Life on Mars Axed

[Blake]

I was severely disappointed with the finale. Even though the signs were there with the little robots appearing all around Sam throughout the run, it was still a letdown.

If nothing else, I really hope the dude who played Sam gets more work. He was fantastic.

 

[barbelith]

Really hope that isnt true because the ending of the UK show is part of the brilliance of the show.. AND makes Ashes to Ashes possible. But I doubt they'd go after that show anyway.

What I love about the end of the UK version is that you think you know what's it all about ... and then Ashes to Ashes completely pulls the rug out.

How did the US version end?

 

[Darklord Dave]

How did the US version end?

Spoiler

It was all a cryosleep induced dream as Sam and the entire '73 crew are astronauts on the first manned mission to Mars to find DNA. (They're on a Gene Hunt.) NoNuts is the Colonel in charge of the mission and Gene is actually Sam's father. The whole dream was Sam working out his issues with his father.

 

[barbelith]

Spoiler

It was all a cryosleep induced dream as Sam and the entire '73 crew are astronauts on the first manned mission to Mars to find DNA. (They're on a Gene Hunt.) NoNuts is the Colonel in charge of the mission and Gene is actually Sam's father. The whole dream was Sam working out his issues with his father.

Wow.

Spoiler

In the UK version, he's simply in a coma after having been hit by a car. After being revived, he decides modern life is empty and jumps off a building so he can return to 1973.

This is complicated by the sequel series Ashes to Ashes, where another cop is shot and wakes up in 1981 alongside Gene and company. She's familiar with Sam's "case" and assumes these characters must be shared Jungian archetypes experienced by people in near death experiences, except evidence starts building that in fact Something Else is happening. I'm not caught up on Ashes to Ashes yet so I don't know if they've started pointing to anything more specific than "Everything you thought you knew from Life on Mars is wrong."

 

[Kratos]

Yep, a great show, one of the best on TV. Perhaps a little too different for the great unwashed TV-viewing public. Guess I have to go rent the UK version now.

I have seen both the UK and the US versions but I have to say I prefer the UK version

 

[gdb]

I wanted to get into this show but I was waiting to watch the British first and I hadn't gotten around to it. But as my interest is more research than recreation, I'll just peak to the end... see what it's all about... let's see...

Spoiler

It was all a cryosleep induced dream as Sam and the entire '73 crew are astronauts on the first manned mission to Mars to find DNA. (They're on a Gene Hunt.) NoNuts is the Colonel in charge of the mission and Gene is actually Sam's father. The whole dream was Sam working out his issues with his father.

Wow.

Spoiler

In the UK version, he's simply in a coma after having been hit by a car. After being revived, he decides modern life is empty and jumps off a building so he can return to 1973.

This is complicated by the sequel series Ashes to Ashes, where another cop is shot and wakes up in 1981 alongside Gene and company. She's familiar with Sam's "case" and assumes these characters must be shared Jungian archetypes experienced by people in near death experiences, except evidence starts building that in fact Something Else is happening. I'm not caught up on Ashes to Ashes yet so I don't know if they've started pointing to anything more specific than "Everything you thought you knew from Life on Mars is wrong."

Spoiler

Huh. Well I will say one thing, it's not what I expected. Not as big a twist as how Newhart or St. Elsewhere ended but... okay.

 

[Hulksmashed]

Two things:

First I really liked the ending. Pretty inventive...

Spoiler

I mean the show is called life on mars....and that is exactly what the whole show is about! Loved the "Gene Hunt" reference. I would have been SUPER dissapointed if the whole show was just Sam in a coma. Way too predictable and cleche.

Secondly, it definately seems that they were building the story and heading in a different direction. Possibly to the UK version ending. I think they found out in the middle of the season the show was ending and came up with a "quick" end to the story which worked very well.

 

[Blake]

Two things:

First I really liked the ending. Pretty inventive...

Spoiler

I mean the show is called life on mars....and that is exactly what the whole show is about! Loved the "Gene Hunt" reference. I would have been SUPER dissapointed if the whole show was just Sam in a coma. Way too predictable and cleche.

Secondly, it definately seems that they were building the story and heading in a different direction. Possibly to the UK version ending. I think they found out in the middle of the season the show was ending and came up with a "quick" end to the story which worked very well.

I would agree with you, but:

Spoiler

There were signs of the space ending everywhere from the beginning, such as Sam constantly seeing little robots. You also have his "spaceman" nickname, among other things. I think the ending in space was something that they had in mind from the very beginning.

 

[Ktjn]

I would agree with you, but:

Spoiler

There were signs of the space ending everywhere from the beginning, such as Sam constantly seeing little robots. You also have his "spaceman" nickname, among other things. I think the ending in space was something that they had in mind from the very beginning.

Thing too, it could be the head Excs at ABC didn't like the "UK Ending", due to possibly alluding

Spoiler

suicide

.

 

[Memnoch]

Spoiler

Oh there was no allusion in the UK version. That was the ending I'd have rather seen, as it was it was just kind of "wtf" with plot holes galore. It would have made more sense if the sequence was 2035 (or whenever the ending was), 2008, 1973, BACK to 2008 and wake up in 2035. Either way, for me, the ending was a complete and total let down

 

[Darklord Dave]

Spoiler

Oh there was no allusion in the UK version. That was the ending I'd have rather seen, as it was it was just kind of "wtf" with plot holes galore. It would have made more sense if the sequence was 2035 (or whenever the ending was), 2008, 1973, BACK to 2008 and wake up in 2035. Either way, for me, the ending was a complete and total let down

Spoiler

I thought the little coda with NoNuts in 2008 was touching and made me accept 2035 much more easily. But it does bring up "why 1973 and 2008?" I guess they could argue that the astro-Sam would be the same age in 2008 as Sammy was in 1973 - but obviously the issues he was working out with his father were completely different than what we saw in 1973.

 

[JacktheRipper]

Spoiler

It probably won't return, but I see Gene's loafers as an opening for something more.