it took me a minute to adjust to the fact that so many years had gone by,
Took me awhile to adjust to this as well Brit. Looks like they past by the 5 years of war and started up with May 1945 .
Samuel West lost both his parents within a year
This must have been devastating for him Brit .... Both my parents are gone now and the adjustment even after one is something that shatters you but two so quick is unimaginable.
Another lovely episode of "All Creatures"! This (for me) was even better than the first. My mind was firmly planted in the later time zone and life was moving on in the warm, chaotic way we have come to know of this family and village. Which all means that I am going to be wary of the next, as I would expect after a few lighter/happier stories regarding the animals a more realistic one is forthcoming.
Deedee, I've been on a mini Vera marathon of late and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I am not going through each season in full, I am flipping back and forth, picking out episodes that interest me no matter what season they are in. I am particularly looking for the stories I don't quite remember well and staying away from those that involve children or I know have a heartbreaking ending. Generally, the Vera stories try to end on something uplifting, they will find some nugget of good, but there have been those where the story drains you and I don't want to revisit that right now.
So far, except for an episode in S13 (the one where Joe first comes back) it has been a stellar watch. In hindsight I don't think Joe's return was what it should have been - no one was happier than I to see him come back into the fold, but after taking this trip back in time, in all honesty, the stories from S13 were not among the highlights of the series. For that reason, I am skipping watching anything further in that season. What made the Vera and Joe stories so strong was their relationship... all the focus on the turmoil his return caused soured that season.
Now, that being said, the first story of S14 with Joe, Inside, in my opinion, was one of the best of the series - far exceeding the finale episode of the series which seemed a bit too unfocused as they were trying to wrap the storyline up and give Vera and Joe a proper ending. Not a problem, as Inside well made up for this. I've watched it twice and know I will go back to it again.
I will say this, I have a new appreciation for Kenny Doughty's role as Vera's sidekick as I have re-watched his episodes and feel quite strongly that he really got the shaft (along with Shep and a few others) in the "Farewell Pet" documentary. She talked a length about her feelings for David Leon and barely mentioned Kenny Doughty's, Aiden. I followed Vera on social media at the time he was part of the team and the two were close. They attended many functions together and she showed/expressed a genuine affection for him. I did not see any of that in the "Farewell" doc. That took me by surprise and left me with a slightly bad taste.
I do want to mention I re-watched the episode "Black Ice" that David Leon directed and he did a great job, it was excellent.
Added note: I know you were very fond of Aiden during his tenure, and was sad to see him go. I was equally sad, but got so enthused when I found out DL was coming back that I lost some perspective. I have regained that on this rewatch and want to acknowledge it.
Nicely written, Brit. Thank you. I am now curious to rewatch the Inside episode.
I am enjoying the direct access to Britbox and Acorn, and feel like a kid with a candybox. That said, sad to say, I've lost the sticktoitiveness that I used to have with over the pond series. I didn't like the personality change they gave Joe when he returned.
PBS WLIW is airing George Gently right now, and that's another case in point. George had to go out with MS, really? And Bacchus, was he always a pillock, or was he redeemed at the end? I can't recall.
And I am focused on Martin Freeman right now, but The Responder? Again, more fast forwarding of the cringey characters.
But Vera, she was ahead of her time. Olivia Benson without the hotsy totsy scene chewing.
Still and all, it makes happening upon a gem all the more satisfying.
Bacchus, Deedee was never redeemed, he was a pillock from day one and remained that way always. If I remember correctly, it was because of him that Gently died in the end.
I give you credit, I would never be able to rewatch any of GG, I still have trauma from some of those stories - they were terribly hard watches. I loved George though, that character was wasted on Bacchus, I wish they took George in a different direction in his journey after his wife died. Such a lovely, honourable man, there are few out there like him in the TV detective sphere... in fact, the only other that comes to mind is Jimmy Perez.
https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/itv-dalziel-and-pascoe-new-series-newsupdate/
ITV and Britbox have commissioned a contemporary reimagining of Dalziel and Pascoe. it is worth remembering that the BBC series from 1996 was set in the present day, whilst the novels first appeared in the 1970s. Casting to be announced.
Sheerwater, I just read this and also came here to post the news! I don't know what to say... can't see anyone play the character of Dalziel other than the legendary Warren Clarke. The man was iconic in that role. I will admit I am interested to see what they (try) to do with it.
Thanks for the update Sheerwater ... interesting to see what they will do with this one .... Warren Clark had such a heavy stamp on Dalziel will be interesting to see who they will get .
Brit ... how did last Sunday's ' All Creatures ' .... turn out .. did the shoe drop ???? , like you said , Gonna be an Ep. where things do not all turn out well. My PVR went on the blink . Think it was because of power outages from one of those storms we had. It was set to go last Sunday , all indications were good but it just didn't record . Replayed again early Tuesday morning and reset PVR to catch it . Did not record AGAIN so I knew something was wrong . Did a REBOOT on all receivers and did a record test on PVR . Seems to be working now .
Hilarious. Will be as good as the 'new' Miss Fisher, I'm sure.
As Warren might say: bollocks.
Solar, I was waiting to hear the okay from you before I tipped my toe in to the next episode! 😄
I will give it a go tonight and hope for the best. The "other shoe" will drop at some point this season, it always does... those are the episodes I have a very difficult time watching (I know everyone here feels the same way) otherwise, I really enjoy the series, it has definitely grown on me. If I see it going in that direction I'm going to turn it off. I will let you know so you don't go in unaware.
Glad you got your PVR problem solved, we can't be losing our shows!
Deedee, I saw Warren Clarke in a "Miss Marple" last night. Miss that man.
Okay all, two thumbs up! It was a very enjoyable episode of ACGS... and, romance is in the air! I won't say anymore not to spoil it, but Solar you will watch this one on repeat.
I will let you know so you don't go in unaware.
Thanks, Brit and solar, for the warning. I'm not a constant viewer, but like to catch the episodes after they've aired. Therefore, I'm not sure to what the 'shoe' is!
I too miss Warren Clarke. I was very invested in the early D&P shows, hated when they 'cleaned him up'. With some exceptions, I am not fond of pretty detectives. Warren, John Thaw, Jeremy Brett, Shaw, I like them older and grizzled.
There were some remake successes, but change for the sake of aiming at the 2026 audience is not my cup of tea.
Ah well, I'm in the minority, not one the sponsors are aiming for, that's for sure.
Deedee, see my post before your most recent above regarding my follow-up after watching the latest episode of "All Creatures". I gave it a thumbs-up just to let you and Solar know that the animals in this week's episode stay happy and healthy. What we mean by the "other shoe dropping" is that just like in real life, this isn't always the case and as expected these episodes are a sadder watch.
I finally finished the last episode of the recent "Lynley" remake. I watched the entire season because I thought there might be a chance for this one to stand on its' own. In the end, for me, it just does not have the gravitas of the original and I came to the conclusion it never will. So, that's that.
Ah, as I thought Brit. I still have the picture of the fox in my head, Thanks for any warning.
Brit .... watched last Sunday's Ep. ' Jenny Wren ' S6 E4 of All Creatures .... no shoes dropped , animals and people all fine so sit back and enjoy at a time of your choosing . lol
Thanks, solar! :O)
dee .... I forgot to mention you with Brit ..... your also waiting for a ' shoe to drop ' in regards to All Creatures .... , now you can also enjoy . lol
Hi - everyone okay?