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Life on Mars : Complete BBC Series 2 [2007] | ![Life on Mars : Complete BBC Series 2 [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51HYGCdsNaL._SL160_.jpg)
 enlarge | Actors: John Simm, Philip Glenister, Liz White, Dean Andrews, Marshall Lancaster
Studio: Contender Home Entertainment Group
Category: DVD
List Price: £39.99
Buy New: £13.28
You Save: £26.71 (67%)
New (19) Used (10) from £12.50
Rating:  45 reviews
Format: Box Set, Closed-captioned, Pal
Languages: English (Unknown), English (Original Language)
Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region: 2
Number Of Discs: 4
Running Time: 462 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.4 x 1.1
EAN: 5030305105174
ASIN: B000JIH6SM
Theatrical Release Date: April 16, 2007
Release Date: April 16, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New and Fully Guaranteed - Over 90% of orders are dispatched same day or next day by First Class post. Please note Danish customers may incur custom charges.
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
It's hard to believe it's over. Life On Mars shot out of nowhere at the beginning of 2006 to become a vital, gripping drama, and this second series more than maintains the sky high standards that the first so memorably set. What makes it even more surprising is that all the ingredients were there for it to go so tragically wrong. The central premise, that for unknown reasons modern day police detective Sam Tyler wakes up in the 1970s, is fraught with potential potholes, yet the creators of Life On Mars twist it very much in their favour, delivering a skilful, taut comparison between policing then and policing now. It's this clash of approach that provides many of Life On Mars' sparks, but nonetheless, it has much more than that going for it. It boasts, for instance, a terrific level of attention to detail, and weaves in quality narrative too, with Tyler frequently caught between unravelling his predicament, the crimes before him, and his 1970s' colleagues with their 1970s' tactics. This second, and final, series wraps things up surprisingly well, and consistently delivers laughs, action and plenty of pub talk off the back of it. It's also a delight to revisit Life On Mars, and that makes this collected boxset of the episodes of season two an absolute must for any fan of gritty, interesting and terrifically entertaining British drama. Quite, quite brilliant. --Jon Foster
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| Customer Reviews:
 The Devil's in the Detail April 2, 2007
Dr. George L. Sik (Epsom, Surrey)
33 out of 38 found this review helpful
Putting your finger on what makes this series special isn't difficult. Despite it being rather repetitious when push comes to shove, something keeps you watching. Yes, there's the weird, dreamlike feel and the fact that we can now look back on series like The Sweeney with our tongues firmly in our cheeks - but the crucial ingredient is the authenticity of the seventies details. Not just seventies details, either: specifically 1973. No one has heard of Abba yet and there isn't a womble to be seen. Others might have been more slapdash with their research, but not here. For anyone who lived through the seventies and, despite everything that was wrong with that decade, enjoyed it, this series is a delight.
Episode 5, which begins with the characters mysteriously inhabiting Camberwick Green is pure genius. And as for abrasive, unreconstructed Gene Hunt dressing up as Tufty the Squirrel...what can I say? I'm sure the series is popular with those under thirty, too - but it's just so much better if you were there. Trust me!
Fantastic stuff! June 26, 2007
anon-london
25 out of 25 found this review helpful
I think in many ways series 2 of this quality drama exceeds the first.
It is more driven and piles on the plot in ways that are imaginative and complex.
The extra's on this DVD are also more slickly put together and professional.
I still have some extras left to watch but can only say at the end of the series I felt that I'd just watched something highly significant and wonderful.
The two complete series as drama will no doubt be studied forever by budding film students. And watched by new generations as it is repeated down the line.
I thought it was wonderful that something this bold could be made now amidst a 'reality tv' society. And perhaps it will lead the way for other production companies to take risks as the writers here did in order to push boundaries and bring more quality to the screen.
As said before in my review of series one - though it lacks the masterful genius of Dennis Potter (see The Singing Detective, which is simply one of the best dramas I've ever seen) - it brings an intelligent thought provoking drama to mainstream. Particularly in this series - this drama is entitled to 5 stars of its own.
Watch it then tell all your friends to watch it!
A Total Winner July 6, 2007
Steve Horsfall ( author) (UK)
22 out of 24 found this review helpful
I've loved this whole series since the very first episode and now own both Boxsets, which take pride of place in my DVD collection. The concept is so original, although now copied or mimicked in a number of other shows, but it is the casting that makes this really work - John Simm and Phil Glenister have such a great on-screen chemistry that keeps you glued to every scene and every now infamous line of narrative, particularly for Gene Hunt. Like many over the age of 35 it is great to remember when lifestyles were less complex and more innocent (although not always for then better) and see the sharp contrast with the modern world.
Is it enigmatic or is it from Barnsley ? April 12, 2007
russell clarke (halifax, west yorks)
21 out of 26 found this review helpful
On hearing that the second series of Life On Mars was to be the last somehow the expectation quotient went up , after all if this was the final series then the writers had to bring the whole story of Sam Tyler to a definitive conclusion .....or did they . After all it's considered the province of writers to leave an ambiguous ending where they see fit, though I often think it's just lazy writing or that they genuinely haven't a clue how to conclude their work. The American series "Lost" is a pertinent example of this .
Series Two was always going to struggle to match series one which felt audacious , fresh and exigent and the first three episodes though covering pertinent and composite issues such as racism , terrorism and an old staple of sci-fi -corrupting the timeline felt a little jaded and lacking the innovation of previous episodes. In fact it has started to feel like most other cop dramas , though obviously a very good one. Episode four where Sam( John Simm) and Annie ( Liz White) infiltrate a swingers network under the pseudonyms Tony And Cherie Blair and where Gene Hunt ( Philip Glenister) crashes the first party so they have to introduce him as Gordon Brown see's the drama truly regain the impetus from last series.
With a truly exceptional "Camberwick Green" pastiche starting episode Five where the team investigate the disappearance of a young girl the series hits it's stride with the lines really starting to fizz between the characters Hunt: "Look at her ,she's as nervous as a very small nun at a penguin shoot ". Episode six introduces a very topical element of casual anti Muslim sentiment from members of "C Division" "They all look the same to me " says DS Ray Carling (Dean Andrews) though it's cleverly flipped on it's head when a Muslim says the same thing about white people. There is also the quite brilliant moment when Annie says as they crowd round a body lying on the floor "Boss there's a viscous yellow liquid leaking from his ear" to which Gene Hunt replies "No that's a drip from my fried egg buttie love ,well done Miss Marple" . Episode seven has Gene Hunt accused of murdering a suspect and started to drop tantalising hints about how Sam Tyler's predicament would resolve itself with the introduction of Frank Morgan (Ralph Brown) who may or may not have some connection with Sam's life in 2006.
The final episode is an absolute tour de force of complex, tense drama as our expectations of what has happened to Sam are ripped to shreds before our eyes and them cunningly reassembled in something reminiscent of what they were previously. It's difficult to explain without giving the game away and even though Sam's final act slightly defies credibility (But at the same time harks back to the very first episode) or should i say the manner of his achieving it does, it brings the series to an emotionally satisfying and oddly moving conclusion. Some will view it as an ahem...cop out more "Vanilla Sky" than "Fight Club" but I feel it's very well handled giving the audience what they want , or what I assume they want, but without resorting wholly to cliche or gross sentiment. I also detect a hint of social commentary in Sam's reaction to modern policing by committee and his preference for the rough & tumble hands on and decidedly un pc policing of the 70,s .
The actors again do a splendid job, the production values are spot on (Was it nearly always sunny in 1973?) and the scripts while too often relying on Sam mentioning things yet to happen and thus getting quizzical looks from his colleagues is full of superb lines and interchanges between the characters with Gene Hunt again getting all the best lines . Though my favourite line of the whole series is when Sam says to Carling after finding out he has met a woman and receiving a vague reply about her :"She sounds enigmatic ", to which Carling responds perplexed "No , she's from Barnsley".
I am going to miss "Life On Mars ", and I'm sure I am not the only one. though of course this DVD and the forthcoming box set of both series(Hopefully containing all the extras included on the single series versions) should go some way to cushioning the blow. The best TV drama series of recent times , but not for as Gene Hunt would put it - "Great , soft, cissy , girly , nancy , French bender, Man Utd -supporting puffs".
OUTSTANDINGLY BRILLIANT April 12, 2007
MARK CUNNINGHAM (Essex, UK)
19 out of 21 found this review helpful
Five stars aren't enough... having missed three of Series 1's episodes, I immediately bought the DVD set upon release and watched the whole series over one very wine-fuelled night. I was hooked. For me, Series 2 was even more infectious and, having been a kid in '73, I could relate to so much that it often proved to be an emotional experience. I cannot remember a more gripping and entertaining TV series. It's a work of sheer genius. Naturally, I pre-ordered my Series 2 DVD set weeks ago. Time to buy more wine and unplug the phone!
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