I have to admit to enjoying the current series of “Primeval” more than I have “Doctor Who” in recent years. The reason is simple. It comes without RTD’s tedious gay agenda which infects not only “Doctor Who” but “Torchwood” even more so and merely acts as a disservice to his cause. Nobody feels it necessary to exclaim their heterosexuality at every given turn of the drama in “Primeval”, it’s just a straightforward monster show. “Doctor Who” forgot that from the very first episode when it came back revamped, and destroyed, in 2005. “Primeval” isn’t perfect by any means. In the latest series, a new love interest has been introduced for Connor which is an unnecessary distraction. We all know that Andrew-Lee Potts is dating ex-S Club 7 singer-turned-actress Hannah Spearritt, who plays Abby, in what passes for real life in celeb-land! So, we can all guess that the new girl in his fictional life won’t stand a chance!! Connor declared his love for Abby in a literal cliff-hanger, in episode four, so why he doesn’t just tell this other girl to go take a running jump I’m not quite sure.
But the point is, the relationship stuff doesn’t really intrude like it does, big time, in the reinvention of “Doctor Who”. “Primeval” is a show about dinosaurs, and monsters abound. My favourite series of “Doctor Who”, Season Five, the middle Troughton year, is affectionately known as the Monster Season. To his credit, Eighties’ “Doctor Who” Producer John Nathan-Turner saw the strengths of this decidedly individual year and tried to recreate it, with varying degrees of success, in Season Twenty-One. The monsters are well realised in “Primeval”, despite being totally computer generated, and I found it a genuinely exciting moment, this week, when Abby was snatched by one from the boat she was on. I don’t find myself thinking, Hannah used to be in that bloody awful pop group, either, like I kept remembering Billie’s tedious debut single “Because We Want To” when watching Rose in “Doctor Who”. Miss Spearritt is no longer running around in her undies, which was ostensibly on the grounds of having to keep her flat warm for her pet dinosaur! She, undoubtedly, wants to be taken more seriously!!
This series of “Primeval” has also introduced a narrative arc, which I could well do without, but again it doesn’t detract from the fun of “monster of the week”! The whole season is actually taking place on a parallel Earth, to the one in the first season, and it’s interesting to note how quickly one forgets that. It doesn’t deter from the peril even though, theoretically, any of the regular cast members could now be killed off only to find them still alive once hero Professor Cutter is returned to our Earth. I wouldn’t mind losing all the cynical and patronising characters representing officialdom, too, although, having said that, Ben Miller’s Charlotte Church gag was a laugh-out-loud moment in the latest episode. All quibbles are only minor, however. It’s precisely because “Primeval” doesn’t require its target audience to engage in any thought processes, whatsoever, that the series remains undeniably fun! Perhaps it works because it’s still only ten episodes old whereas “Doctor Who” comes with an enormous back story which, if you are aware of it, and find it contradictory, can often intrude.
But the point is, the relationship stuff doesn’t really intrude like it does, big time, in the reinvention of “Doctor Who”. “Primeval” is a show about dinosaurs, and monsters abound. My favourite series of “Doctor Who”, Season Five, the middle Troughton year, is affectionately known as the Monster Season. To his credit, Eighties’ “Doctor Who” Producer John Nathan-Turner saw the strengths of this decidedly individual year and tried to recreate it, with varying degrees of success, in Season Twenty-One. The monsters are well realised in “Primeval”, despite being totally computer generated, and I found it a genuinely exciting moment, this week, when Abby was snatched by one from the boat she was on. I don’t find myself thinking, Hannah used to be in that bloody awful pop group, either, like I kept remembering Billie’s tedious debut single “Because We Want To” when watching Rose in “Doctor Who”. Miss Spearritt is no longer running around in her undies, which was ostensibly on the grounds of having to keep her flat warm for her pet dinosaur! She, undoubtedly, wants to be taken more seriously!!
This series of “Primeval” has also introduced a narrative arc, which I could well do without, but again it doesn’t detract from the fun of “monster of the week”! The whole season is actually taking place on a parallel Earth, to the one in the first season, and it’s interesting to note how quickly one forgets that. It doesn’t deter from the peril even though, theoretically, any of the regular cast members could now be killed off only to find them still alive once hero Professor Cutter is returned to our Earth. I wouldn’t mind losing all the cynical and patronising characters representing officialdom, too, although, having said that, Ben Miller’s Charlotte Church gag was a laugh-out-loud moment in the latest episode. All quibbles are only minor, however. It’s precisely because “Primeval” doesn’t require its target audience to engage in any thought processes, whatsoever, that the series remains undeniably fun! Perhaps it works because it’s still only ten episodes old whereas “Doctor Who” comes with an enormous back story which, if you are aware of it, and find it contradictory, can often intrude.
3 comments:
I have to say I'm really not sure about Primeval... the effects are sometimes a bit dodgy and the photography isn't brilliant! In Saturday's episode there was a scene shot by the river and the response of each actor was plainly filmed on different days as the lighting was so different. For all that, it is traditional Saturday evening telly and my boy loves it... I just feel the idea of it hasn't been realized as well as it should.
I really can't get into this, I start watching every week but after 10 mins I've often changed sides or just lost interest, it just seems like a really bad show to me.
I view "Primeval" as a bit of escapist nonsense. It's obviously not going to run anywhere near as long as "Doctor Who" and the viewing figures are nowhere near as high. But, in many respects, despite its many flaws, it feels closer to the original spirit of "Doctor Who" than does new "Doctor Who"!
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