Rising From the Ashes

Oh, I feel bad about writing about this because this is such a cheesy TV programme. It's predecessor Life on Mars was less cliched and more believable, and you felt more endeared to the main character.

Still, Ashes to Ashes is an extreme guilty pleasure for me. For all of you living in America, the story goes like this: Alex Drake is a cop in London in the year 2007. She encounters a strange man while on the job who takes her hostage and shoots her. When she comes around, she's in 1981 and is part of a police force that includes the neanderthal Gene, the even more ape-like Ray, new-romantic Shaz and the cowardly Chris (all of whom, apart from Shaz, were in Life on Mars which was set in 1973). She fights crime with them and in-between solving the crimes and arresting the bad guys, she tries to figure out how to return to 2007 and save her parents, who coincidentally died in 1981.

Yes, it sounds weird. It is weird. But you can't help but laugh at some of the dodgy scenarios they end up in. But Alex is such a terrible character. She's weak, contrived, screams a lot and dresses like... well, like a bit of a tart really. Nothing like poor old Sam Tyler who everyone felt sorry for (his madness was at least believable and you felt sorry for him).

Well, I'll keep watching it anyway. The current series is nearly finished so I won't have to cringe much longer at Alex stomping around like the Queen of Sheba. Seriously, I only watch it for the crack between the others - and the REALLY bad driving!