Spooks: "Thou Shalt Not Kill" (1x01)

[fajrdrako]

I watched the first episode of Spooks today - or MI-5, as the American DVD is called. Enjoyed it very much, though for the first half hour or so I had trouble recognizing characters. I liked the way it was an intelligent show, seeming very rational, grown-up and straightforward after Torchwood. And consequently just a touch tame. But 'tame' in a good way.

1. I liked the theme of the Biblical texts, especially in the scene near the end with Tom Quinn and the villain, Mary Kane, are playing duelling Bible-quotes. I'd say he wins, but then, I'd be on his side anyway.
   
   
2. Enjoyed the whole theme of Tom's difficulty in the romance department: he loves Ellie, but if he tells her that she knows him under an assumed name, and everything she thinks she knows about him is a lie - will she accept him anyway?
   
   
3. Loved the scene where Ellie's daughter is singing "Zoe, Zoe, Zoe" because she heard Tom talking to Zoe on the phone. No wonder Ellie fears he's a bigamist. And I loved his totally incoherent promise to her: "Whatever you're thinking it is, it's something else."
   
   
4. I had some trouble catching all the names and identities. I liked Tom (and Zoe) as viewpoints characters - is that consistent through the series? I will find out.
   
   
5. After seeing so many American movies and TV shows where the villain is British, it was fun to see a British show where the villain was American. And I liked the points they made about their relationship with the CIA, and the diplomatic channels being at cross-purposes with the needs of national security or preferences.
   
   
6. I liked Zoe very much: as the young operative on one of her first big cases, she reminded me of Rebecca from The Inside. And I liked her for similar reasons.
   
   
7. The best thing about the whole show was the last couple of minutes, where we learn that Tom lied to Mary Kane and double-crossed her, and she snarls, "Judas". Woo. Strong ending. I loved it.

Comments

[gillo]

Is this the first episode of the first series? I assume it must be because of the names. The actors playing Tom and Zoe married not long after the first series, BTW.

But 'tame' in a good way.

There are some very definitely non-tame elements coming up.

And I liked the points they made about their relationship with the CIA, and the diplomatic channels being at cross-purposes with the needs of national security or preferences.

That is a recurring issue right through all the series (aka "seasons".)

I adored the first couple of series of

Spooks

. I still like it, despite certain events and cast changes...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Is this the first episode of the first series?

Yes. The first set of DVDs.

The actors playing Tom and Zoe married not long after the first series, BTW.

Really! That's wonderful.

That is a recurring issue right through all the series (aka "seasons".)

Good! Picture me rubbing my hands together in glee.

I adored the first couple of series of Spooks.

I certainly feel it's off to a good start.

[kiltfriction.livejournal.com]

Spooks is a fantastic show. Yes it has it's flaws, as you will find, but they are very good at playing with moral ambiguities, keeping up with modern-day politics and they don't flinch when it comes to their characters. You however will.

And I liked the points they made about their relationship with the CIA, and the diplomatic channels being at cross-purposes with the needs of national security or preferences.

Interagency and international relations will crop up again and again, it produces some very interesting moments.

The characters will define themselves very soon - Harry Pearce is a god - and they'll clash a few times. You're right though it is very intelligent, at times philosophical but not always terribly 'realistic'.

And trust me, 'tame' is not something you will be calling Spooks soon...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Spooks is a fantastic show.

It certainly made a good impression on me with the first episode.

they are very good at playing with moral ambiguities

I loved that. And the way they showed the many different approaches to the subject at hand, and how many people had a different agenda regarding the case - moral, diplomatic, political, personal.

Harry Pearce is a god

A lonely god?

trust me, 'tame' is not something you will be calling Spooks soon...

Oooh, good.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

Gad. It was only a matter of time. Um, if you need the next two seasons on DVD, just ask.

I was pleased to discover this show -- I thik I found it on broadcast tv before I cancelled my tv service all those years ago, then later looked it up on DVDs. I had no trouble following the characters, which is unusual for me, as I spent the entire movie of The Fellowship of the Ring unable to tell Merry from Pippin. I agree with you about the excellent characters and grown-up storylines here, but as the series went on, I found that it disappointed me severely. Instead of setting up unimagineable scenarios and then giving us a spy-cohort out for them, too often it would just follow along a plodding path of everyday fiction. But that is not until the end of season two, never fear. You have lots of good things till then. And after then. And that's just my personal take, anyway, right?

One thing they did that troubled me was to make Tom unable to keep either his mouth shut or his pants zipped. It's one thing for him to agonize about telling someone he loves about his secret life; actually, there are internal regulations governing such situations, I'm sure. It's another thing entirely when he picks osmeone up and tells this person his real name and job description on the first night. (And, thinking of spy inbred precaution, it was also pretty reckless for him even to sleep with this person on the first day they'd met, no?) hope I'm not giving too much away. You'll either forget this when you reach that point, or use it to anticipate!

"Whatever you're thinking it is, it's somethign else" was a brilliant and utterly Tom thing to say.

As for catching names and identities -- they move things around fast. I had to tape it and watch it several times; this actually added to my enjoyment of the show, as I like having to put that much work into a show and have it rewarded as well as this one rewarded me.

Zoe is adorable. And incredibly wonderful. Danny, however, I'd like to drop off a bridge [g]....

It was utter delight to see how this show portrayed Americans! Wait till you get the episode where the President visits -- it's such a hoot, as the CIA takes things seriously and the Brits all sit there wondering if they're on drugs or something. Code names and acronyms galore, and all very pointlessly utilized. I loved it.

A few episodes had unreal American characters, but I'm sure British folks didn't realize how unreal they were and so their enjoyment of the episode wouldn't have been marred. And some of the accents go all over the place, but again -- eh.

This show is known for its last-minutes shots to the midsection. Yes. Good show. I applaud whoever lured you to watch it!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

if you need the next two seasons on DVD, just ask.

You have 'em? Goodie! I don't know how long it will take me to get through series one - even being home in the daytime this month, I am inundated with riches to watch, and sleeping a lot, and trying to write and read and... but I do want to watch this. Properly. It's good. Well, of course it is: you told me so, and I believed you. Hadn't had a chance to sit down and watch, though.

It's another thing entirely when he picks osmeone up and tells this person his real name and job description on the first night.

Does he do that? Uh-oh, can you say 'security breach'? Sounds like loose-lipped Toshiko with Mary in "Greeks Bearing Gifts". I was horrified.

Wait till you get the episode where the President visits -- it's such a hoot, as the CIA takes things seriously and the Brits all sit there wondering if they're on drugs or something.

LOL. I can hardly wait.

some of the accents go all over the place, but again -- eh.

I had trouble with some of the accents. Especially at first, and especially with the American character, Mary Kane. When she first started to talk it sounded like Martian or something - it certainly didn't sound American. Then I guess either she spoke more slowly or clearly, or I got used to it, but I kept the subtitles on, just in case.

I applaud whoever lured you to watch it!

Ahem: it was you. Initially, anyway - I've heard other people recommend it since, but you were the first person who talked to me about it.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

Heeheehee... cool! I will watch these tonight with my supper. I will be thrilled to see them again, and to talk about them! yay.

Mary Kane: ugh, yes!! This woman was not American. This woman may never even have heard Americans talk. No, kidding. She just didn't have the knack of mimicking dialects, I guess. But apparently they wanted to keep her in the part, so... as I said, eh.

Fun to hear that I'm not the only one to watch shows with the subtitles on. First time I watch a Doctor Who, it's almost mandatory. Or else I can jsut sit back and enjoy the sensory onslaught (in a good way), and figure things out from context. That's fun, too.

Um... yay, me! I am happy to be one of the people feeding you good stuff to keep your addiction going [g]. But I'm sorry thta it took your breaking your leg to finally get the time to watch this show... poor panda, that wasn't what I had in mind at all!

Yeah. Now I'm all psyched to go home and watch this again. Been a while! Oh -- Zoe gets a totally heroic episode soon, she actually gets to say the phrase, "I work on her Majesty's secret service," and I loved it. I must be a closet monarchist. (Well, right now I have a button on my jacket that reads: England! Please Take us Back -- Crazy People Running America.)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

apparently they wanted to keep her in the part, so...

Aside from the funny accent, I thought she was good in the role. Ordinary looking enough to miss in a crowd, but rather intense and scary in her way.

First time I watch a Doctor Who, it's almost mandatory.

I wish I could - first time, I don't have subtitles to look at. Mostly I get the dialogue but there's always something I miss - sometimes because of the delivery, sometimes because of the accent, and sometimes because it's a British cultural reference I don't know.

'm sorry thta it took your breaking your leg to finally get the time to watch this show... poor panda, that wasn't what I had in mind at all!

I guess its the upside that comes with the downside. The really awful thing would be to be stuck with a broken foot and nothing to watch.

I must be a closet monarchist.

I was about to say "I am", but then - I'm not even closeted. Just a monarchist. Monarchist-anarchist, that's me.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

(We're starting on the third round of this, now... this is such fun!)

(But I have to go home soon. I do. Really.)

The first times I saw Doctor Who and Torchwood episodes, with you, we of course had no subtitles, and couldn't even run it back to listen again. I missed so much! But it was a fun kind of sensory onslaught, yep. Lately, the most annoyingly unfathomable bits of dialogue were when he kissed Martha to put his alien trace on her for the rhino-headed cops; I couldn't make out his lines there even after I'd read the subtitles. And they were such important lines!

I sometimes turn on the subtitles even with BG. And I wish Stargate SG-1 had subtitles, as I miss a lot of that. I tend to play the bit over and over, and eventually the pattern of syntax brings the wording out for me. It's kind of fun, actually.

The utter downside of having a broken foot -- yes. Luckily, you have many friends with many, many DVDs and books!

I was reading your exchange, from posts a little while ago, about getting to the end of your strength and weeping in the kitchen, and I felt for you in the most in-you-very-skin way possible. No one who has not been in that position knows how exhausting it is, nor how utterly devastating it is to realize that you just [sorry, loudmouth on cell phone and it's jarring my concentration out of "verbal"]... this isn't easy to say, anyway. you know what I mean. And I know what you are feeling. In those times, feel not only your other correspondent's hugs, but mine too, supporting you till you can take another breath and then finish what you tried to do.

Closet monarchist? You're not a closet anything! hee. I love that about you. You've inspired me to live my life without hiding. And I thank and admire you for that.

And it's hard not to get in my car and drive to Ottawa to be there to fetch the remote for you, and put in a new DVD... sigh. But you know that.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

(We're starting on the third round of this, now... this is such fun!)

It is, isn't it?

(But I have to go home soon. I do. Really.)

And I should go to bed soon - my back is aching a little from sitting up. But still. It's fun.

we of course had no subtitles, and couldn't even run it back to listen again.

That's how I do my initial watching. Watching it more than once helps, of course.

the most annoyingly unfathomable bits of dialogue were when he kissed Martha to put his alien trace on her for the rhino-headed cops; I couldn't make out his lines there even after I'd read the subtitles. And they were such important lines!

I liked that scene. Did you ever learn what the lines were? I transcribed that episode, so I have a copy of the script somewhere. Yes, it's Here - "Smith and Jones" (http://fajrdrako.livejournal.com/650150.html).

You're not a closet anything!

True. I have no secrets.

And it's hard not to get in my car and drive to Ottawa to be there to fetch the remote for you, and put in a new DVD...

It would be wonderful to have your help, but I've mastered the art. Use the remote to open the DVD, three hops with the walker to remove the old DVD and put the new one in, three hops back to the sofa and the remote and Bob's your uncle. It was much easier to learn to do that than to open the fridge door.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

(This is typed under duress... chilly air from the vent is blowing right on me. At least the glare's not too bad, on this screen.)

I have replayed that night's go-arounds for days, now. Such fun that was!

I hope your back did not get too sore...! Yikes, sorry. Myself, I became quite stiff from sitting in one position -- next time, I'll remind myself to shift now and then!

Yes, I now know those lines. After I turned on the subtitles, I could read them; after that, I could kind of follow -- kind of match the verbal sounds to the words that apparently were being said. But, gad, what a problem that would have been for me without subtitles. I would have missed a key event of the plot, and been left trying to fill in the plot-holes with my own imagination.

It would be wonderful to have your help, but I've mastered the art. Use the remote to open the DVD, three hops with the walker to remove the old DVD and put the new one in, three hops back to the sofa and the remote and Bob's your uncle. It was much easier to learn to do that than to open the fridge door.

Oooohhhh, don't say that, now... don't tell me it would be wonderful to have my help! I may show up on your doorstep!

Then again, I would be doing so at my own risk. I would of course bring my camera, and catching you in action would probably end up with my own quick trip to the emergency room, and... well, it wouldn't be pretty.

I'll just try to content myself with long-distance energy massage. It feels good to me, too!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I hope your back did not get too sore...! Yikes, sorry. Myself, I became quite stiff from sitting in one positionI would of course bring my camera, and catching you in action would probably end up with my own quick trip to the emergency room, and... well, it wouldn't be pretty.

Hee - do I have you terrorized?

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

This has been a problem lately. I have basically two positions: lyingimmobile on the sofa with my foot raised, or sitting at my computer, a little hunched. In between, a lot of hopping on crutches or walker. I really must do more stretching (if I can find a way) or just plainmoving. Either way, the immobility tends to make me quite stiff.

Ah. I was subtly worrying about that. See other comments, from this evening, about physical therapists who wade enthusiastically in while a person is still muzzy from the initial anesthesia...!

You do realize, then, that you need to keep up your full range of motion; there are many sedentary-type exercises you could be doing, and I have no doubt you'll be able to think them up on your own. You will quickly get tired, when you do them: just be aware of this, as it's gonna be a Big Truth [g]. But you do need to keep all of the rest of yourself working well, you're clearly aware, and think of it as a good way both to make some time pass productively (you will feel so satisfied, when you've exercised a little!) and to earn the nap that is inevitably coming.

I'm sure you'll get plenty of ideas from the catalog that came with the "grabber," eh? I'm thinking of the elastic bands that you slip under one foot and then "row" with, so to speak. And that's just one thing in there.

I would of course bring my camera, and catching you in action wouldprobably end up with my own quick trip to the emergency room, and...well, it wouldn't be pretty.

Hee - do I have you terrorized?

Utterly. After all, you're armed: you have the crutches. Even if I scamper out of reach, you could still throw them at me, and even if I duck the first one, the second one's coming too!

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

See other comments, from this evening, about physical therapists who wade enthusiastically in while a person is still muzzy from the initial anesthesia...!

Heaven forbid!

that you need to keep up your full range of motion

Well, except for The Foot.

After all, you're armed: you have the crutches.

I do - when I can reach them!

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

I now don't remember what I was referring to with the "muzzy from anesthesia" remark. (have a student at my left who is flipping book pages and swinging both feet back and forth under the desk; i'll be out of here soon, I guess)

Your "full range of motion" is your still-unhurt body; went without saying. Don't let things atrophy. You're too young to start feeling "old" joints!

Crutches within reach... well, grab'em with the extend-a-reach thingie. Which reminds me of the wingtip of a pterodactyl, strictly from a skeletal perspective.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

It's nice to think about the wingtip of a pterodactyl! My gizmo is coming in handy.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

...Hm. Actually, now your "full range of motion" is also the reach that the gizmo has extended.

So glad that it is coming in handy. Tell me some of the things you've picked up with it! Tapped anyone on the shoulder with it yet? "excuse me, you're blocking my view of Captain Jack Harkness! Please step aside."

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

"excuse me, you're blocking my view of Captain Jack Harkness! Please step aside."

The only person who has ever dared to do that - and it was long before this mishap - was Harry. I screamed at him! He looked startled.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

The only person who has ever dared to do that - and it was long before this mishap

Aha. And now, no one will ever dare again, knowing that you are armed as it were with pterodactylic reach!

- was Harry. I screamed at him! He looked startled.

Hee! He would. Harry sometimes doesn't quite get our shared obsession, bless his heart.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Harry sometimes doesn't quite get our shared obsession, bless his heart.

No. He has his own obsessions. I think he understand in principle - not always in practice.

[walkingowl.livejournal.com]

"Pterodactylic reach." Gad, I like that one!

[auriaephiala.livejournal.com]

Isn't that a great episode! I found the portrayal of the extremists quite believable, particularly after seeing Jesus Camp a few weeks ago.

I just (literally today) picked up the second season of this show (my favourite second hand place had a copy, for which I'd been looking for ages) -- so I can loan it to you at the appropriate time.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

particularly after seeing Jesus Camp a few weeks ago.

What is "Jesus Camp"? I assumed it's camp in the "Bible camp" sense, not 'camp' in the "John Barrowman would have fun with this" sense.

I just (literally today) picked up the second season of this show (my favourite second hand place had a copy, for which I'd been looking for ages) -- so I can loan it to you at the appropriate time.

How wonderful - and how serendipitous!

[janne-d.livejournal.com]

Ah, Matthew Macfadyen. Lovely man.

just a touch tame

That comment had me scratching my head and going "but the wasn't the first episode the one with...?" until I realised I was thinking of the second episode - an episode that I can still remember after a gap of 6 years. You may change your mind after that one.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Matthew Macfadyen. Lovely man.

He is. A very subtle actor. Not a favourite - not yet - but he brings a lot fo the character of Tim Quinn.

That comment had me scratching my head and going "but the wasn't the first episode the one with...?" until I realised I was thinking of the second episode

I assume you are thinking of the boiling oil? No, not tame.

But the show is still more straightforward than many I watch - a welcome break into linearity amidst the camp, the surreal, and the sensational.

This is good. I really, really like coherent linearity.