purplecat

Even before we got to the opening credits B. had had a few choice things to say about whales "nothing that has ever lived has been as large as a whale" and the behaviour of animals in general including ones in the sea "they keep away from novel objects". He also had some thoughts on what you might or might not tell the commander of a nuclear sub about potential hazards to navigation - though he was later slightly mollified when it turned out not to be a nuclear sub.

( Spoilers under the cut as usual )

After it all finished B said, "if it wasn't quite so silly, Primeval would sometimes be very good." I didn't disagree.

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/44897.html.

I'm incredibly impressed that I can download this via iTunes. The quality of the download is much better than you would get from many *ahem* alternative means and as a bonus it's perfectly legal, quick and simple.

( Spoilers, obviously, under the cut )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/44708.html.

Oh Primeval! How can you get so much right and so much so wrong all in the space of one episode!

( My likes and dislikes under the cut )

In the end this episode, like much of the season was strangely frustrating, as if I kept getting glimpses of a much better show. The complaints aren't new: general lack of imagination when it comes to female characters and the military and organisational set up they have. I did think this was much better than season 3. I thought both the character work and the arc plot were more consistent and better thought out, but the show would definitely benefit from lightening the tone a bit and, frankly, investing a bit more effort into the set-up of the ARC and turning its supporting characters in actual people.

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/35629.html.

I'm often a bit dubious about `wedding episodes' in action/adventure series. They have a bad tendency to stray into the realm of slapstick and the comedy of embarrassment which really isn't my thing and, even when they don't, the need to combine the sort of frothy light-heartedness which seems compulsory for wedding stories with an action plot often results in tonal awkwardness. Primeval mostly managed to navigate this awkward tight-rope but, in the end, I wasn't really convinced that the wedding was bringing much story.

( Spoilers Under the Cut )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/34898.html.

What struck me most, oddly perhaps, about this episode was the lack of on-screen chemistry between Andrew Lee-Potts and Hannah Spearritt.

( However I'll get to that in a minute )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/33726.html.

I actually found this episode surprisingly suspenseful and gripping, in spite of the fairly straightforward nature of the set-up. An example, perhaps, that sometimes it is better to do something simple well, than to try something more complicated.

( More under the cut )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/33152.html.

Well that was an oddity of an episode in lots of ways. More interesting, I think, for the possibilities it raised and the ideas it hinted at than for anything that actually occurred.

( More under the cut )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/32659.html.

I'm tempted to simply cut-and-paste my review of 4.01 in order to discuss 4.02 since I feel they share many of the same strengths and weaknesses.

( However I'll endeavour to say something a little different )

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/31030.html.

It's generally acknowledged that the season opener in any genre series is a tough job. You need to introduce new characters, re-introduce the show in general and deliver enough short term whizz and bang to make viewers check back next week. Primeval, this time around, had also saddled itself with a number of loose plot threads that needed tying up.

( More under the cut )

In summary I didn't think much of the story or pacing here, but I did find much to like in the episode and, in retrospect, it bodes far better for the rest of season 4, than the structurally more competent, but otherwise lacklustre introduction to season 3.

This entry was originally posted at http://purplecat.dreamwidth.org/30641.html.