There are many reasons to not like the Brits. Their insistence on driving on the wrong side of the road is one. The fact that their accent makes the dimmest person sound positively brilliant is another. But the thing I hate most is that, by and large, their TV is light years ahead of ours. Take, for example, Jekyll. Done on a budget that would barely cover the catering on Heroes, this BBC series is a reinvention of the Jekyll-and-Hyde legend that crackles with wit, suspense, and genuine terror. No wonder the writer, Steven Moffat, was just hired by Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson to write their Tintin trilogy.
I dare you to watch the first four minutes of the pilot episode and not demand to see more.
See? That’s some mighty fine televisioning right there. (And, yes, that’s The Bionic Woman’s Michelle Ryan, rocking her native brilliant-making accent.) The first season’s out on DVD, so get thee to a diskery!
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Not to mention one of the best surprise endings ever…
Okay, that’s pretty friggin’ awesome.
Moffat (note the spelling, please, Mr. Bernardin…) is one of the best TV writers working today, not just in Britain, but anywhere.
Not only is “Jekyll” incredibly clever and scary in the gothic sense, but it has such an overall authenticity that when the titular weirdness unfolds, it’s all the more jarring, because the world in which it’s occurring is so genuinely portrayed.
Moffat is also the creator/writer of the original Brit “Coupling,” which is a better version of “Friends” than “Friends” is, and he has written four of the best episodes of the relaunched “Doctor Who” series: “The Empty Child” and “The Doctor Dances” from series one, “The Girl in the Fireplace” (featuring “Tristan & Isolde” and “Moonlight” star Sophia Myles) from series two, and most recently, one of the best hours of TV I’ve ever seen, “Blink” from series three.
If you’re not familiar with Moffat’s body of work, or if “Jekyll” is the only taste you’ve had, get your hands on as much of it as you can.
Steven Moffat is also notable for turning in four of the best episodes of another great British show lightyears ahead of anything of its kind being shown on American TV: “Doctor Who.” Even if you’ve never seen an episode of this show, wait patiently for Season 3 to come out on DVD in America and watch “Blink.” No one writes plot *and* witty banter with quite the aplomb of Moffat.
Don’t just take my word for it! Listen to Scott as well!
We just watched the first season of Jekyll thanks to my mother in law and I really hope they continue with a second. Absolutely brilliant!! The Blink episode from Dr. Who scared the bejesus out of me! Season 3 on DVD in early November, definitely worth checking out!! And the man who plays Jekyll is dead sexy, so that’s a plus.
I’d leave a long comment, detailing my reaction to the clip, but I have to go get it – I was completely hooked after the first 2 minutes, a rabid fan by the time the clip ended. Why isn’t there TV like this in North America?
I have to add my praise for “Jekyll” as well. I watched the first season on BBC America and wasn’t sure at the beginning of the first episode. I quickly became an addict and can only wish for more episodes. I’m torn between wanting “Bionic Woman” to succeed and wanting it to fail so she can concentrate on a hoped for second season!
I love British TV…maybe we should have the people sponsor TV here, too…at least we’d have fewer commercials…
I couldn’t agree with you more, Marc. So many shows on BBC AMerica are light years ahaead of what we get on American televison, such as MI5, Murphy’s Law, Hex, and now Jekyll. High quality stuff. My only complaint is that the ’season’ on British television is much shorter than ours; Jekyll premiered in July and finished in September, for example. But it’s all very good. And the Graham Norton show is funnier than any talk show we have here. Long live BBC America!
That looks great! I netflixed it immediately.
Thought the name sounded familiar. Coupling is one of my favourite shows ever! For any Canadians out there, Jekyll is on Showcase, Wednesday night at 10pm.
I am Canadian and couldn’t agree more with your review of Jekyll.
UK television is tops in my book.
I had this on my Netflix a while ago and now I have to wait on other people? Why couldn’t this be kept a secret just a little bit longer?
The “Blink” episode of Dr. Who scared the begeebus out of me! Dr. Who is Brilliant!
Torchwood is also amazing!
I’ve got a theory that because there are fewer TV channels in Britain that only the best shows actually get put on the air. With my 200-300 channels at home there is quite a lot of filler material.
Perhaps reducing the number of channels in America would result in better programing, and fewer episodes of “According to Jim”.
I worship at the altar of Steven Moffat. “Blink” was one of the best episodes of TV (not just Doctor Who) I’ve ever seen, Jekyll is fun, and worth checking out!
BBCAmerica is currently my favorite channel. I actually really like the shortened seasons of Brit TV. It makes for tighter stories & higher quality shows, with more attention paid to each episode. There’s rarely a “filler” episode like we have on American TV.
I have to add on with the BBC America & Steven Moffat love. First saw “Jekyll” when they had a marathon of the first 3 episodes on and I had a lazy Saturday going. I couldn’t stop watching after thinking I’d be flipping the channel after 10 minutes. Absolutely brilliant! And Moffat – amazing writer. Loved “Coupling” (couldn’t even watch the American version…bleh) and the “Doctor Who” Blink episode was so good that even my wife watched it. Unbelievable! She was scared of statues for a week or two after that. My wife’s a bit odd.
Oh, and the title character – can’t remember the actor’s name, but he may be the best thing I’ve ever seen on TV. I can actually believe that other characters in the show see him as a completely different person. Took me a while to realize it was the same guy – he’s that good.
How can Michelle Ryan be so good in Jeckell and so howlingly bad in Bionic Woman. I guess she is having trouble with the accent.
Up here in Canada we get the finale of season one tonight. I too was completely hooked by ep. 1 because of James Nesbit. Normally, a ‘nice father figure or politician’, his first full conversion into Hyde was terrifying. You know watching him that this is somebody who will. not. stop. ever. Basically, you encounter someone like him, you’re dead. Rest was not quite as good, but wow, the first was brilliant.
i’m totally in. and she is a way better actress in this than she is in bionic woman. my favorite part is that they communicate with each other and have mutual agreements. that’s an interesting version of jekyll and hyde that i’ve never seen before.
I watched the series a few months ago and was quite intrigued by the show. The acting, writing, and Ms. Ryan are great reasons to watch.
I loved “Jekyll” when it aired over the summer on BBCAmerica (one of the BEST reasons to get extended cable or satellite!). I wasn’t that impressed with Michelle Ryan but James Nesbitt … WOW! He’s amazing. I also liked the detective character. She was wonderful. Best ending of a season I’ve ever seen … made me jump!
That was fantastic! If only I had BBC America.
I put this on the must list while it was airing on BBC America. It’s awesome. Also, check out Steven Moffat’s Coupling. Absolutely hilarious.
My love hate relationship with BBC America was in the love stages while this was airing.
Y’know, the problem with actually living in Britain is that you need to swim through so much more doss before you get good UK series – actual series with plots and stuff, not reality TV. And as good as Jekyll looked, if the BBC had put a fifth of their marketing muscle for the aforementioned Heroes behind it, I may have actually known about it.
Well i watched the 1st one of the series got sukked in and now have watched all the episodes in the last 5-6 hrs LOL its was fabulous!!! Coming From Texas U.S.A Great watch for anyone interested!!
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I saw a trailer for it on the Hot Fuzz DVD, thought it was a ovie and downloaded it… bu i got the 6th episode.. i ruined the ending for myself, but im still DLing the other 5. the one i saw was great!
On the Michelle Ryan note, Sophia Myles is another UK actress who delivers a performance in an American series that is noticeably worse than in the British series. But both of these are examples of shows with incredibly poor writing, from which few actors can escape (Moonlight and Bionic Woman).