Fire up the Quattro, ladies...

[SueBaroo]

Alex has.

What I wouldn't give to have him berate me like that. Cor.

Last weeks was a bit meh, but I'm looking foward to tonight..

Oh dear god, I forgot to set the Sky Plus - bugger.

Can i just say there was one bit last night where the camera was quite low down as Gene Hunt walked across the room and I noticed a rather large package between his legs. The man has it all!

REally? Might do a bit of freeze-framing this morning

i definately saw a respectable size. Made me go all funny!

PWonk

She was, they are a lovely family and the sad thing is is that her mother is still alive and never got over it.

But it was a twatty speech by a man of a different time, an impotent roar from a dying lion.

He genuinely didn't get the problem, but A2A has been in large part about an old-style copper trying to get along in the new world. And sometimes he stuffs up royally, like he did last week. And when he does, it's shocking and horrible.

He's a flawed character, not a cipher for political argument. He's Heathcliff, not Wilberforce. I get that it wasn't the rousing speech that the applause seemed to portray it as, but that worked for me, because I thought - yeah, you lot really believe this, you really don't have a clue, but that's ok, because Scarman will write his report.

And Alex's reaction was a good mirror of the audience's reaction, too - she was initially smiling at the rabble-rousing nature of it, and then she checked herself when she thought it through. Kind of like reading a DM article and feeling your blood-pressure go up, and then thinking "Hold on a minute..."

I thought the episode fell a little flat, but that may be because I had guessed the outcome so wasn't surprised.
I'm glad they didn't have a romantic moment. it wouldn't have been right, though there was a look in GH's eyes when she said she would miss him that was indescribable. She still needs a good slap.

So is/was GH a real person who was actually there or has she added that in to her construction?

If she is Shazza's guardian angel, is GH hers?

Help!! Cant find A2A on BBCiplayer!!!

I reckon the only explaination that makes sense is that she is both bodily in 2008 and has gone back in time in some wierd way, because yes, Gene wouldn't have been there if she hadn't been there either, but then, Evan wouldn't have gone there if they hadn't have gone to see him at the courthouse in the first place.

What that means for the reality of Gene Hunt I have no idea, but I'm rather fond of the theory that he's someone who this happened to years before and he's just adapted,

It might not have loaded yet, Lottiejenkins - last weeks took a while, i think.

some fanfic here for those of us you already missing A2A

Interesting theory Sue! But I doubt that many A2A viewers will interpret it that way - let's face it, how many of them will have heard of/remember Scarman? I thought the writers went out of their way to portray Scarman as a stuffed shirt, bourgeois ignoramus who didn't understand anything about good policing. And I think they were moved to tears by their own silly speech, and expected to audience to react in the same way - why else would Alex be applauding it?

Because it's science fiction drama.

I totally agree that there are many would think that the speech was the dog's gonads. It's a fact of life that many, many people see the world through DM goggles.

But I honestly think that a drama about a woman in a coma who goes back in time has no particular responsibility to 'teach', iyswim. It presents characters, we draw our own conclusions.

Actually, I'm sort of in the middle of a bit of existential crisis because of old Mr Hunt.

I found myself thinking, you know what, mate, I don't believe you need to be a bigoted bastard to put what's wrong right. But I find myself attracted to you because you're just bloody sure of which way is up. And I just don't think I know that myself anymore.

And I hate that, because the place I get my moral compass from, that tells me that truth and fairness and justice matter, the only place that makes sense, is the same place that feeds me all this stupid bigotry stuff that part of me wants to applaud because it's sure and certain.

Like madamez said earlier in the thread, if he was real, I'd have wanted to shoot him in the head. But he is real, and I can't shoot him in the head because that's wrong, but I don't bloody well know how to deal with him if I don't shoot him.

Certainty is defined here as the mental state of being without doubt, which can be both attractive and repellent.

What would it be like to be without self doubt? The world would be a very black and white place without it. The trick to manage is to find a comfortable place on the tight rope. (let me know if you find one, still looking for mine)

I think there are moments in one's life where lack of doubt can be experienced momentarily, particularly in relationships, (Brian Patten describes it beautifully in 'Her Song' here, but that on balance it is not a positive ongoing state.

ah, cobblers to all this introspection, I'm listening to Supertramp and blowing a raspberry to being a misery today. Unbreakable, indeed.

Ive found it on iplayer now

Ive just had a thought.........Has anyone suggested that Gene maybe Mollys Dad? if that sounds silly im sorry!!

I can see what you mean about being attracted to certainty, Sue - it is an attractive quality to most people, I'd guess.

Anyway, I'll stop pissing on your chips now.

oooooh lottie there's a thought

did AD say what happened to Molly's dad? I can't remember

I think you can enjoy the passion of the speech within the context of the programme, without sympathising with his views.

I also definitely agree with what Sue says: 'you know what, mate, I don't believe you need to be a bigoted bastard to put what's wrong right. But I find myself attracted to you because you're just bloody sure of which way is up. And I just don't think I know that myself anymore'.

If he was Molly's dad, wouldn't Alex remember him though? Also he'd be much older in 2007, wouldn't he, which is not necessarily a reason why he might not be her dad, I know, but still. I think in the initial press releases etc for the programme, just after LOM had finished, Alex was described as a 'single mum'. but I don't remember what had happened to the dad.

Mollys dad was mentioned in the first episode when they were talking about Mollys birthday,,, Alex asked Molly if her Dad had remembered her birthday and Molly said yes he had.

PolicyWonk, I thought my chips were getting a bit soggy...

Molly's dad is in Canada on holiday, I think. s'not Gene. Although, there's some very interesting possibilities if it wasn't Evan on the phone to Layton, because the only other person it could have been was...

Last night, after Alex had said to Gene "I don't remember you being there" he said "I go where I'm needed"

To me that says he only exists in her head, and he needs to exist so she can get home, like he did for Sam Tyler.

Otherwise, she breaks lots of time travel rules. You know, the ones we learnt in Dr Who etc

I wondered that too sue. By the way - did anyone else notice a rather shifty looking young policeman that I'm sure I've never seen before in yesterday's episode - there was one shot as he looked sideways up at either Gene or Alex walking past - he had a definite air of Layton about him. Probably just imagining things though.