First off I don't this will be as structured as some of my other topics. More just a ramble of programmes and stuff that I liked.

Of the things that I'm grateful to my folks for it would be being born in the 1970's so that I was just the right age to appreciate the cracking TV or the 80's and early 90's. We were just so well placed to be in the right place at the right time to witness a really good age of TV.

During school age we had the likes of Ulysses, Cities of Gold, G Force and Dogtanian (how did he get that crooked sword out of his scabbard) which were badly dubbed and seemed to run for ages. Dungeons and dragons was also a cracking cartoon that I used to enjoy. Most of would be on BBC1 with three distinct sections. The 4.20 prog which was a lighter cartoon, ( I think ITV ran He-Man at this time) then something a bit more meaty like Dungeons and dragons, then break for John Cravens Newsround before the either Blue Peter or Grange Hill. I used to like both of these shows and I think I even went in for a couple of Blue Peter comps but never even won a badge. Grange Hill was very good in those days with tucker, mrs mclusky, mr bronson, zammo, roland etc. I used to love the sausage coming in during the comic style opening credits.

Of course when the supposed kids tv ended then it was right in for Neighbours and again right when it was at it's peak with Kylie, Jason, Guy Pearce and Craig McLachlan. Craig's girlfriend in the show was called Bronwyn and jeez did I have a stomach churning crush on her. She was just such a lovely, curvy blonde australian. I was a huge fan of Swap shop. It seemed kids were divided into two camps of either being tiswas or swap shop fans. Tiswas was just a bit too anarchistic for me with all those kids running around and custard pies being flung all over the place. I much preferred the calm, measured delivery of Noel Edmonds and his natty jumpers. I did flick back to ITV though for World of Sport. Dickie Davies, his see through studio that allowed you to see the people walking around in the background and their support of wrestling with Big Daddy and Giant haysticks offered so much more appeal than the more adult Grandstand. My memories were of it showing nothing more than horse racing which as a young child were just as boring as hell.

In the evenings I used to enjoy Jim'll Fix it, The Goodies, Doctor Who (Peter Davidson had an american assistant who I had an even bigger crush on) and Tripods, although they frustratingly only seemed to run this for two series before it got cancelled. Great theme tune if I remember. As I got older from this my tastes also evolved and when my parents got divorced I was allowed to stay up later with mum on a Friday.

Fridays used to be great TV, there was the A-Team which for a growing boy was truly brilliant, then I think cagney and lacey (what did she say to that flasher?), the gentle touch with Gill Gascoigne that my mum liked and then Benson. Then there was airwolf which I loved. Oh the opening credits with the music sweeping in as the titles flashed up the helicopter schematics and quick cuts of airwolf in action. Stringfellow playing the cello by the lakes edge as the eagle soared overhead and ernest borgine ran to the helicopter clutching his toolbox but which I think was stuffed full of pies and sandwiches. Then there was manimal with Simon McCorkindale (sp) but this didn't run for very long and the animal transformations were never like American Werefolf or anything. Of course there was Knight Rider and who couldn't like that. Even then the Hoff was a legend and KITT was just awesome particularly that crazy whooshing sound when he hit super pursuit mode or would jump over the top of the camera. It began to lose it when the evil one CARR came along but by then it had done enough to get into my hall of fame. I also really liked the motorcycle version of this called Streethawk. The title music for this was just wicked (done by Tangerine Dream) but it only lasted for one series unfortunately.

As I got older things still got better with Quantum Leap which I truly loved. I have the series on DVD now and hearing the music just brings it all back. Settling down on a tuesday night on BBC2 in the dining room (parents watching the main TV in the living room) and watching all those tales was just great. I'd have to say that with all the individual moral tales but then over reaching arc this was one of the few series that I made a real effort to watch and I think if I had to choose one I would say this was probably my favourite series.

When I watch them again now the relationship is just great between Sam and Al and watching the finale of Season 2 where Al dances with his wife with Georgia playing in the background I'm sure was the first time I prob heard any Ray Charles. There are just so many good episodes and like Airwolf was a Belasarius production which means that guy made some great TV that added real benefit to my entertainment. It only ran for five series although I think this is a good length of time to give the series a good run before they start running out of stuff. Wonderful series and I'm looking forward to sitting down with my bro to watch the third series.

You know I was thinking the other day why it is that I like Quantum leap so much and I think it's because each episode tells an individual story. In an age where we have 24, Lost and Invasion that give you a snippet here and there but basically string you along for however many episodes QL delivered a story.  You felt fulfilled at the end because you'd seen a mini adventure and still managed to get into the characters.  These new american show come up with a good concept and then just drag it and drag it out.  You find yourself checking the clock as you are watching episodes thinking 'they aren't going to have time to fill it in and thus will have to wait until the next episode for a possible answer.  I'm not stupid and I understand the reasons are to continue it too make as much money as possible but it's lead to boredom and in the end you just can't be arsed.  My series of QL are perfect viewing now.  Sitting down of an evening after dinner, I see that nothing is on and then pop in a episode of this with a smile that I'll get a 45-50 complete story.

Saturday nights when I got older were also good for TV.  It isn't hip to say it but I used to enjoy Noels House Party.  It was fun and entertaining and so must other people have enjoyed it because it's viewing figures were huge, though of course few people are prepared to admit it nowadays.  Everyone now seems to enjoy Ant's and Dec saturday show which is a blatant copy of what Noel did 5-10 years previously.  I also used to enjoy Baywatch.  The Hoff always delivers and some of the girls in the background were very pretty.  I never went much for Pammie or any of the other cast because all, or nearly all, had implants which as you know I just can't stand.  I did enjoy the opening music and whenever I hear those drums from the beginning it reminds me of early saturday nights, getting ready to go out and those four girls that were walking away from the camera in the matching black swimsuits.

I was also into Angel.  Never got so much into Buffy, not out of choice but always because of the time it was aired.  Whenever I caught an episode that they repeated at a later time I would enjoy them and always noted that the accompanying music was very good.  I did get behind Angel though when it came out and really enjoyed it's darker and slightly more adult tone. For a good few years that was the best thing I saw on the TV offering great, well written characters, top notch action and excellent stories.  I'm yet to see Series 5 but I loved the development of Wesley from foppish watcher in Buffy through to the toughened arse kicker who was happy to shag Lyla senseless while he kept someone tied up in the cupboard. Brilliant. 

Joss Whedon went on to further himself by writing Firefly.  I never saw this on the TV but a work colleague got the series on DVD and it was the best, most consisent high quality show that he did.  I'd say that some of the very finest episodes of Angel were almost as good as Firefly but nothing has matched this for brilliance.  Reasonably simple plot but the writing is just so very good, music brilliant and the perfect balance of humour, sacrifice, loyalty and bravery.  Top notch show that was cancelled way too early though maybe the fact that it was encouraged Joss to pull out his best work.  The film that then followed, Serenity, was also great and can be found in my Movies section.

Angel. Series 5

This didn't ever look like it was going to come back on the TV and someone had commented unfavourably on it so I hadn't made much of an effort to source it out.  This was pretty weak when I consider the enjoyment that the previous series had given me. It was one of the few series that I made, if not the only over the last couple of years (quantum leap having been earlier), a real effort to watch though it was very handy that it was aired at more time ie 11.00ish. 

Anyway I read a review on DVDverdict.com that rated it highly and validated it's recommendation by highlighting the very things that I loved so much about the series. A friend who is with blockbuster online hired the first couple of discs which I eagerly devoured. A change of location for the fang team, an influx of creativity for the writing team and the inclusion of Spike helped it immensely and it really was good. As you may have read in the journal entry I then hired out the remaining three discs and watched all of the 11 episodes in one back to back orgy of entertainment.

The writers on this show, and I don't just mean Joss because I know there are other controlling/guiding hands involved such as David Greenwalt, Steven DeKnight, Jeffery Bell etc, could teach many a hollywood scribe about how to write a decent script and story.  About how if you want to build a character you let the audience see the character and how he/she acts in certain situations that you place him/her in. That you don't rely on another character telling the audience about them or try and make the audience identify with a character just because he pulled a cool move. How by the time of it comes you share in the characters moment of bravery, death scene, dealings with loss or love etc because you have made a connection.

These are writers that understand that if you want to create drama you need emotional triggers like love, betrayal, honour and loyalty wrapped up in dramatic scenes. These writers understand that sacrifice is intergral to a show and audience connection and that wounding and/or killing off characters is important to make the audience feel the risk and the danger that other characters face.

It's amazing how many strong, solid characters Angel has. Angel who remains the central stoic pillar, Wesley the strong, honourable and loyal guy who is unfortunate in luck and love, Gunn the tough street kid who is only human in wanting to better his position and make a weightier contribution other than his fist, Fred who is intelligent as she is adorable, Lorne who so could have over egged the pudding but had such style, flair and charisma that he was hard to ignore and finally Spike who came over from Buffy slotting in so well, playing off angel brilliantly and displaying similar virtues of bravery.

Season 5 is a masterpiece for weaving back in these characters, integrating other former characters and rising to a crescendo that surpasses almost anything else that has been on television.  It equals without question Quantum Leap and in many ways surpasses it in it's depth.  Many episodes are truly wonderful and I think this has a lot to do with the fact that the makers knew it was the last series.  They couldn't be so over indulgent with characters arcs, they couldn't drag out stories over numerous episodes and they had to tell stories without relying on another series to answer the questions.  Because of this it is a tighter, leaner, meatier and thoroughly more satisfying series.  By the end you are sad to have seen it gone but happy and contented at what a wonderful package it was. Sometimes you need something to end to be able to look back and appreciate what has passed.

From Fred's harrowing death scene to her stunning return as the amazing Illyria through to the final episode with everything on the line and Angel sending his troops out to appreciate what could be their last day to Wesley's emotional death scene which is heartchoking in it's delicacy and beauty through to the sad but rousing ending this really is work of art.

I've rambled on about the wonder of this programme but even now feel I am barely scratching the surface of my praise, feelings and support for this production. I only wish I was a better writer to be able to articulate the greater words and sentences that could do this series justice.  What a show!

Terminator: The Sarah Connor chronicles

I confess to being a little sceptical about this when it was announced. A great franchise coming to TV to make a few bucks and discredit the story is what I thought.

I’ve enjoyed all three films, even the third which had some great action and the best ending of any of them. I know many thought T3 a sell out but I think the director had some big boots to fill and for the story to run true, Judgement Day did need to happen in one form of another.

The series surprised me with the respect it paid to the films and story. It didn’t try to re-invent the brand and add unnecessary new stuff but rather develop parts of the story that real fans would find absorbing. Miles Dyson, Silberman, Kyle Reese etc. The series benefited from a shorter run meaning it didn’t require the kind of padding and filler that you might find in Lost or 24. It was tighter, sharper and always had a continuing forward movement.

It rewarded the diligent fans with little snippets here and there and was clearly written by a fan of the story as opposed to those just willing to make some cash.

I thought all the performances were excellent. Lena Headey was great as the tough Sarah but also with an approachable edge that you would assume she would have had to pass on to make her son so charismatic. I also feel Thomas Dekker was very good as John. It would have been easy to have him still as this precocious teenager that was in T2 but the journey of that film had matured him and it would have been plain annoying if he kept getting in trouble by constantly playing up or creeping out when he shouldn’t have.

He was a future leader in training and you needed to be able to see that he was responsible and mature yet still having the occasional frailties of youth. The moment when he is taking out Cameron’s chip and tells his mum and Derek that “you don’t need to trust Cameron, you need to trust me” is excellent for rewarding the viewer that the future hero is taking shape.

The supporting actors were equally good whether Summer Glau as the arse kicking but oh so delicate Cameron, Richard Jones as the determined FBI agent or Brian Green as the almost terminator like, moral free Derek Reese.

I liked how it conveyed that feeling of dread that everything we knew was going to be lost and also how the series wasn’t afraid to kill people. It was shown after the watershed and so was refreshing that the terminators were pure killers and didn't resort to A’ team theatrics. It also intelligently dabbled with the moral issue that if everyone was going to die, wasn’t everyone expendable to try and prevent it?

All the action scenes were exciting, inventive and very enjoyable. The final set piece in the condo complex was fabulous, especially for the originality of the shot from the bottom of the swimming pool.

There wasn’t a single episode that I felt was slow or failed to deliver and even though the series might have ended on a small cliff hanger, I didn’t feel short changed in anyway. The Sarah Connor chronicles delivered a solid 8-9 hours of cracking entertainment and I think the makers need to be applauded for creating something that adds, rather than detracts, from the Terminator universe.