The second series of Life on Mars, the BBC’s intense blend of police drama, 1970’s nostalgia, and surreal science fiction, was released in the United States by Acorn Media this week.
At the start of the first series, Sam Tyler (a Detective Chief Inspector in 2006) woke up to find himself in 1973. Is he mad, or in a coma, or back in time? While Sam tries to solve the conundrum of where and when he is, police work still needs to be done, and the balance between Sam’s need to return home and his need to solve the puzzles of 1973 are even more tangled in this second series.
The closer Sam (the incomparable John Simm) gets to his new coworkers and friends, particularly his boss Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister) and the intelligent and empathetic policewoman Annie Cartwright (Liz White), the harder it is for Sam to decide whether the voices he hears mean that he is really in a coma. Are these people figments of his imagination? And even if they are, is Sam capable of betraying them to get back to 2006?
The finale of Life on Mars is rich, mind-bending, and ultimately satisfying, though it will also leave you talking about what might have been for weeks afterward.
Video:
All 8 episodes of this series are presented in a beautiful 16:9 widescreen format, standard definition. The episodes are crystal clear, with seamless special effects. Some of the footage in the bonus features is lower quality, but better than the featurettes on the series one disks.
Menu navigation is simple, with each episode cut into 7 chapters for ease of selection. The only annoyance is having to skip through several lengthy commercials on Disc 1 to reach the menus.
Audio:
The stunning sound design, a central feature of the show (particularly in the first and final episodes here), is available in 2.0 stereo or 5.1 surround sound. On the extras, the sound is quieter, but the quality is more consistent than on the series one extras.
Extras:
The bonus features are disappointing. There are no commentaries at all, and although there are some excellent snippets of interviews in the too-long “Return of Life on Mars” (45 min.) and “End of Life on Mars” (28 min.) documentary features, they are overall less engaging than similar features on the previous set.
Much better are the mini-documentaries that take us behind the scenes of episodes 3, 5, and 7. The one for episode 3 is particularly fun, as we follow the cast and crew in the creation of one of the show’s most effective special effects.
There is also a set tour, but everything in it is covered in more detail in the documentaries and pilot commentary included with series one.
A well-produced DVD set, despite the lack of really great extras. If you’ve seen the first series at all, I highly encourage you to buy this one as well--Sam Tyler’s journey is far from over at the end of series one. Also, there is probably someone on your Christmas list who would enjoy both of these sets. Consider the benefits of giving others the time-traveling, crime-solving, intensely emotional journey that is Life on Mars.
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