Lost in Austen: Episode 4

Lost in Austen: Episode 4
ITV
24 September 2008
Fantasy, Historical Comedy, Romance
DVD
B-

In the conclusion, Lydia runs off with Bingley, but platonically.  Nonetheless, Mr. Bennet challenges Bingley to a duel and ends up giving himself a concussion.  Amanda is able to return to modern-day London, where she's followed by a confused Darcy.  She brings Lizzy back with her and tries to matchmake Lizzy with Darcy, but eventually realises that she is herself meant to be with Darcy.  Lady Catherine annuls the Collinses' marriage, and Jane and Bingley get married and move to America.  While I found this series entertaining, I don't think it lived up to its potential.  Still better than the recent Mansfield Park TV version of course.

Lost in Austen: Episode 3

Lost in Austen: Episode 3
ITV
17 September 2008
Fantasy, Historical Comedy, Romance,
DVD
B-

This episode introduces Lady Catherine de Bourgh, played by Lindsay Duncan, who was Lady Bellaston in the '97 version of Tom Jones.  It has some meta moments, like when, after Darcy proposes to Amanda, she asks him to reenact Colin Firth's wet shirt scene.  But I find it a bit hard to swallow that Darcy would invite not only Amanda, but Mr. and Mrs. Collins, and Lydia and Mrs. Bennet, to Pemberley.  Note that the romantic entanglements are getting even more entangled, including a pay-off to Amanda in the first episode telling Bingley she's a lesbian in order to speed up the transference of his affections to Jane.  And in case you're worried that Darcy won't end up with Lizzy, he has to dump when Amanda when he finds out she's not a virgin, although he does admire her honesty and bravery in telling him.

Lost in Austen: Episode 2

Lost in Austen: Episode 2
ITV
10 September 2008
Fantasy, Historical Comedy, Romance
DVD
B-

This episode introduces Tom Riley as Mr. Wickham and Guy Henry (who was John Knightley in the 1996 Emma TV-movie) as Mr. Collins.  Both men produce complications for the Bennets and "Miss Price," but not the ones of the original novel.  Amanda dislikes both men the moment she meets them, and not just because she's read the book.  However, they're both drawn to her, Collins proposing and Wickham propositioning.  She reluctantly accepts Mr. Collins, hoping to get out of it somehow and trying to prevent Jane marrying Mr. C out of duty.  However, after she rejects Wickham, he spreads a rumor that she's the daughter of a fishmonger.  Collins breaks the engagement, which is good, but then he proposes to Jane, who accepts, which is very bad.  Amanda is very angry at Mr. Darcy, who has discouraged Bingley from pursuing Jane, but mostly Amanda is mad at herself for the mess she's made.  (Charlotte despairs of ever marrying and so decides to become a missionary in Africa.)  I went with a slightly lower grade this time, since it felt odd for Amanda to pretty much confess to an indifferent Darcy that she's been a fan of his love story with Elizabeth for the past fourteen years.  Still, I am curious to see how all this is going to be untangled, since the episode ends soon after Collins and Jane's wedding.

Lost in Austen: Episode 1

Beware of strangers you meet in your
bathroom, even if you feel like you know them.

Lost in Austen: Episode 1
ITV
3 September 2008
Fantasy, Historical Comedy, Romance
DVD
B

Those who would be in at least one more episode:

• Gemma Arteron as Elizabeth Bennet
• Ruby Bentall as Mary Bennet
• Hugh Bonneville as Mr. Bennet
• Morven Christie as Jane Bennet
• Christina Cole as Caroline Bingley
• Elliot Cowan as Mr. Darcy
• Florence Hoath as Kitty Bennet
• Alex Kingston as Mrs. Bennet
• Michelle Duncan as Charlotte Lucas
• Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Piranha
• Tom Mison as Mr. Bingley
• Daniel Percival as Michael
• Jemima Rooper as Amanda Price
• and Perdita Weeks as Lydia Bennet

Guy Andrews wrote all four episodes of what is so far a funny and charming program.  I'm not technically re-viewing it, although I'd heard of it of course and had intended to watch it after my ex-husband burned it for me.  I will admit that I tend to be wary of things like Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, which sound like they don't understand the true spirit of Jane Austen.  This mini-series, however, while it does mock the Austenian world, specifically of P & P, does so lovingly and intelligently.

The premise is that Lizzy Bennet is able to enter a modern London flat through one of the walls near the tub.  The owner of the flat, Austen-superfan Amanda Price, gets curious and goes through the wall, only to find that Lizzy has locked the door behind her, yes, hence the title.  Now it's up to Amanda to not muck things up too much.  (That she knows the story of P & P by heart turns out to not necessarily be an advantage.)  This episode takes us from the set-up, shortly after Mr. Bennet has secretly visited Mr. Bingley, to Jane's visit to Netherfield, on Amanda's urging, partly to get Mr. Bingley off his infatuation on Amanda, who did admittedly kiss him while she was drunk.  It looks as if the rest of the series stays specifically in P & P, although it would've been interesting if this had run six years and Amanda could've gone into all the novels.

Dan Zeff directed all four episodes.

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 3

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 3
BBC One
13 January 2008
Historical Drama, Romance
DVD
C+

In this episode, we see things that didn't appear in the '95 movie (although they were in earlier drafts of Thompson's screenplay) and for the most part happened off-page in the novel.  Two of the scenes involve Brandon: the duel with Willoughby and his visit to "Miss Williams."  The scene of Willoughby showing up during Marianne's illness is changed so that, one, he comes across worse, two, Elinor expresses no sympathy to him, and three, Marianne gets out of her sickbed to eavesdrop!  The main reason for this getting a C+ rather than a B- is that Marianne's falling in love with Brandon, which she does out of sequence with the novel's timeline, is compared to a horse or hawk being tamed, ick!

If you're curious, my review of the book is here http://rereadingeverybookiown.blogspot.com/2011/12/sense-and-sensibility.html
and the '95 movie here http://reviewingeverymovieiown.blogspot.com/2015/04/sense-and-sensibility.html .  I want to add that the humor of both is mostly absent in this adaptation, which is why this is "a historical drama" (as the then recent Mansfield Park was), but Pride & Prejudice was a "historical comedy."

This is the 100th show of mine I've reviewed from the '00s, and yes, we're almost done with the decade.  Unless my collection changes dramatically in the next few days, we will not reach 200.  But, hey, the Oughts outdid the Fifties at least.

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 2

The Steele sisters

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 2
BBC One
6 January 2008
Historical Drama, Romance
DVD
B-

Those who join the cast and will also be in Part Three:

• Leo Bill as Robert Ferrars
• David Glover as Foot
• Daisy Haggard as Miss Steele
• Anna Madeley as Lucy Steele
• Tim McMullan as Mr. Palmer
• and Tabitha Wady as Charlotte Palmer

This episode gives more for both Willoughby and Brandon to do than they had in the '95 version, and arguably in the book.  Even Edward gets his first visit to Barton Cottage restored.  Miss Steele pops back up from the book.  The Palmers on the other hand are short-changed.  Note that Edward being described as shy and diffident doesn't fit this version of Edward.

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 1

Sense & Sensibility: Episode 1
BBC One
1 January 2008
Historical Drama, Romance
DVD
B-


The cast who are introduced in this episode and would return at least once more:

• Linda Bassett as Mrs. Jennings
• Lucy Boynton as Margaret Dashwood
• Dominic Cooper as Willoughby
• Mark Gatiss as John Dashwood
• Caroline Hayes as Eliza
• Rosanna Lavelle as Lady Middleton
• Janet McTeer as Mrs Dashwood
• Hattie Morahan as Elinor Dashwood
• David Morrissey as Colonel Brandon
• Morgan Overton as Little Henry
• Claire Skinner as Fanny Dashwood
• Dan Stevens as Edward Ferrars
• Charity Wakefield as Marianne Dashwood
• and Mark Williams (then well established as Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter movies) as Sir John Middleton

Considering that much of the script, by P & P's Andrew Davies, steals from Emma Thompson's award-winning 1995 screenplay, this is better than you'd expect.  The acting and casting are generally solid, sadly with the notable exception of Colonel Brandon.  (I realize that Alan Rickman's shoes were impossible to fill, but it doesn't help matters that this Col. B actually criticizes Marianne's piano-playing!)  I probably would've gone with a C+, but I do like the dramatic coastal scenery, rather than Barton Cottage being plunked down near reedy swamps.  This episode covers through the reunion of Brandon and Willoughby, different than both the book and the '95 movie, but not bad.

John Alexander directed this and the other two episodes.

Mansfield Park

Modest and unassuming

Mansfield Park
ITV
27 January 2007
Historical Drama, Romance
DVD
C

Well, this is at least better than the 1999 Patricia Rozema big-screen travesty.  The truth is, no one wants to present Jane Austen's Fanny Price.  (The '83 TV-movie is better but does have the heroine hearing voices in her head.)  Much more than Emma Woodehouse, she's a heroine that (almost) no one but the author likes.  What's peculiar here though is how literal the title is.  Not only don't we see Portsmouth or London (even in flashbacks), but there's no Sotherton or even parsonage.  Every scene, whether it makes sense for it to happen this way or not, takes place in the mansion or grounds of Sir Thomas's estate.

A similar skimpiness means that supporting characters are erased, not just most of Fanny's family but the Grants, Mr. Yates, and anyone not absolutely necessary to the main action.  Even characters we see onscreen we don't necessarily get to know at all, and that includes Maria and Julia.  And then there are the characters who are simply misunderstood: a shrewd Lady Bertram and a slightly annoying but oddly attractive Mrs. Norris being the most obvious.

Which brings us back to Fanny.  Now, I'm not saying there might not be roles where a romping, laughing, bleached-blonde, pouty-lipped, cleavage-baring Billie Piper would be welcome (and not just Dr. Who or, going by her looks, porn), but this isn't one of them.  As always, when the shy, judgmental, but loving Fanny of the book is replaced by an impostor, I have to ask, to what purpose?  If she's perfectly capable of mouthing off to Mrs. Norris, or seeming to welcome Henry Crawford's attentions, then don't have dialogue that contradicts this.

What works here?  The costumes, sets, and music are serviceable.  Much of the dialogue remains intact.  Blake Ritson is quite good, until we get up to the Edmund-gets-twitterpated-with-love-for-Fanny sequence.  Still, I wasn't laughing bitterly like I was at the Jane Eyre adaptation of '97.  Verdict: for completists.

James D'Arcy is almost unrecognizable here as the dissolute but redeemable Tom Bertram, the polar opposite of his villainously priggish Blifil in '97's Tom Jones.  This adaptation is by Maggie Wadey, and the direction is by Iain B. McDonald, neither of whom worked on any other of my shows.

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 6

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 6
TV Tokyo
March 26, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C

Yes, there's a Part 6 and, no, we don't get any real closure for the series:

• Arima's dark side darkens so Tonami decides to really befriend him;
• Tonami realizes that his plans for revenge have changed and he's attracted to Tsubaki;
• Arima and Yukino still haven't really processed that their relationship is now sexual, or for that matter the fallout of "being their real selves and pursuing their true happiness";
• We don't even see the damn play that Aya wrote!

His and Her Circumstances ranges from a B+ premiere to 2 C-s, averaging out to a B-.  It reminds me a little of Wait Till Your Father Gets Home, in that it's an animated show that starts strong but loses its way, although the decline is more dramatic here of course.  As I recall, the manga went beyond this point and gave a real sense of closure, in fact SPOILER showing Arima and Yukino as married with a teenage daughter.  It's disappointing that the focus couldn't stay on the main couple here, not that side characters are a bad thing, but they should remain on the side.  I'll compare and contrast this with the other anime I have the complete collection of, Fruits Basket, when we get there.

His and Her Circumstances: A Different Story from Up to Now

His and Her Circumstances: A Different Story from Up to Now
TV Tokyo
March 19, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
B-

Kano is being followed by someone, possibly a stalker.  Then it appears to be a female classmate, who might have a crush on her.  Then it turns out that the classmate thought Kano had a crush on her.  And meanwhile Tsukino had set up a prank that she had to adjust.  It's interesting that same-sex crushes are presented here as a normal phase, including for Mrs. Miyazawa apparently.  Yukino is mostly here to react to Kano's dilemma, while Arima only has one line, but if they have to focus on other characters, I'd much rather it was the younger sisters than more about Tonami and Tsubaki.

His and Her Circumstances: A Different Story from So Far

His and Her Circumstances: A Different Story from So Far
TV Tokyo
March 12, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C+

Choppy, confusing yet nonetheless interesting episode, the first half of which has Arima and/or Yukino dreaming about her helping him confront his childhood traumas, while the second half has the theme song and recaps, including by Yukino's female friends.

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 5

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 5
TV Tokyo
March 5, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C

Plans for the Culture Fest continue, as do Tonami's plans for revenge.  Oh, and Yukino thinks kendo is sexy until she smells Arima after practice.  I think I was planning to give this a C+ but the fact that I completely forgot about watching it last night means a C makes more sense.

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 4

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 4
TV Tokyo
February 26, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C+

Yukino agrees to do the play and emotionally blackmails Maho into participating.  They get a teacher to sponsor them and start planning.  Asaba, whose class is doing all the planning for his "dinner show," including tie-ins (amusingly a manga called His and His Boyfriend's Circumstances is one product), offers to help with sets for the play.  Meanwhile, Yukino and Tonami bond further over their dark sides.  Arima feels left out and Asaba is sympathetic.

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 3

Aya

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 3
TV Tokyo
February 19, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C

Aya bribes Tsubasa and pressures Yukino and Maho to perform in her play, which is futuristic sci-fi about androids and their inventor.  Meanwhile, Tonami doesn't want Sakura to know who he is so that he can enact his revenge against her.  And Yukino goes along with it because she can relate to Tonami's remaking of himself.  So much for the girl-bonding.

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 2

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 2
TV Tokyo
February 12, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C-

Tonami gives his backstory, of how Tsubaki both bullied him and protected him from other bullies.  Only Arima protected him, and Arima is happy to welcome him back.  I might've gone with a C, but then there's the scene where Yukino and Asaba force Arima to eat something and then say they enjoy making people do things against their will.  At least the animation is back up to standard.  And, no, I don't know why they couldn't just give the episodes real titles, rather than drawing out "14 Days" to five parts!

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 1

His and Her Circumstances: 14 Days, Part 1
TV Tokyo
February 5, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C+

I don't remember the backstory on this but Hideaki Anno left as director, replaced by Kazuya Tsurumaki, and so we got this paper-doll version of the show.  Same voice actors though.  School is back in session and plans are in motion for the Culture Fest.  Meanwhile, a new student, Tonami (voiced by Ed Paulson), returns after an absence of three years, and Tsubaki used to treat him like a servant.  Note that the opening narration sets the story in the late '90s, one reason I decided to go with the original broadcast dates.

His and Her Circumstances: Progress

His and Her Circumstances: Progress
TV Tokyo
January 29, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
B

The title turns out to be an understatement, as this episode contains all of the following, any of which could've been a half or full episode in themselves:

• Arima and Yukino get to second base and he says he wants to make love to her someday, but also they manage to read and study a lot;
• They go to the beach with their friends;
• He goes to a family reunion where he's shamed as the son of the black sheep, but his adoptive father stands up for him;
• Arima and Yukino get caught in the rain and then seek shelter at his empty house, where they make love for the first time (represented symbolically by her chibi self losing her hat and his chibi self catching it, as well as dancing lights);
• He has nightmares because he's sought happiness.

Overstuffed but still good.

His and Her Circumstances: His Return

His and Her Circumstances: His Return
TV Tokyo
January 22, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C+

While it's nice that Arima comes back, this episode has dubious messages:

• Maho has a 28-year-old dentist boyfriend and this is only seen as a sign of how mature she is.  (No, this is not like "Mrs. Marcia Dentist" on The Brady Bunch.)
• Yukino worries that she's accomplished nothing over the summer but homework, while Arima got taller and won the Kendo championship, neither of them an accomplishment that's going to help Arima that much in life.
• Yukino worries that her life has no direction without Arima, but Maho says love is meant to make you feel uncertain and unbalanced.
• Yukino finds herself more in love and physically attracted to Arima when he returns but she has trouble sharing her feelings until he feels rejected and corners and yells at her.  Then everything's OK.

His and Her Circumstances: Eternal Interspersion

His and Her Circumstances: Eternal Interspersion
TV Tokyo
January 15, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
B-

The family goes to visit the paternal grandfather, leading to flashbacks of how Father and Mother grew up together and gradually fell in love.  We don't see much of Yukino, and Arima is only glimpsed in a photo.

His and Her Circumstances: The Story So Far (Part 2)

His and Her Circumstances: The Story So Far (Part 2)
TV Tokyo
January 8, 1999
Anime, Romance
DVD
C+

After more flashbacks, we finally get back on track.  Arima and Yukino talk on the phone and miss each other.  Asaba comes over because he misses Arima, and we find out more about his background.  We also get some humor with the family, especially when the girls' father is understandably protective when Tsukino and Kano dote on "Asapin."