Based upon the generally glowing reviews, I got a copy of the complete first season of MI-5. I was disappointed. Billed as a combination of '24' and other highly-regarded spy thrillers, MI-5 was not anywhere near the quality of 24.
The first episode repeated the unoriginal concept that if a British drama has an American in it (especially one with a Southern accent), then the American is the guilty party and is generally an idiot or worse. That's episode one.
Episode two was no better. In keeping with the liberal bent of the BBC, a politician who wanted to fight illegal immigration was evil, nasty, and worse to the people who want to decide themselves where they want to live, regardless of the country they've decided to move to.
These two episodes were all that I could watch. I threw the set away in disgust.
Forget it, not recommended at all.
September 17, 2008MI-5 Season 1 is taught, fast paced, and edge of your seat. It is smart and full of action. That said, the Season 1 Finale was contrived, forced, and lacking in credibility.
August 25, 2008I LOVE this series! I have seen all of them through season five and can not wait for season six to become available in the US. If you like spy thrillers you will love this show. The plot's are intricate and always entertaining. This is the only show I have seen where bringing in new characters after a beloved character dies or leaves has been successful. I find I like the new characters just as much as I did the character no longer on the show.
May 19, 2008 |  | Please BROADCAST this show online! |  |
With all the imported Brit shows, it's still a mystery to me why we don't broadcast this one. It's a shame we have to wait so long for the seasons to make its way across the pond. I've seen S1-4 so far and a few things surprise me with this show. There's an incredible rate of turnover of main characters, something that's risky for the show to do and sometimes drive me crazy. Luckily they manage to toss in such interesting newcomers that I stay glued. S2 and S3 are my favorites so far. S2 because that's when the original cast hits their stride. S3 because of the jaw-dropping twists that get thrown including one of the best season-finale. The best part for me is not the glitzy cases, but the drama that churn around the characters, the way they wrestle with the demands of the job, the lack of real identity and the effects on their relationships. The cast is so top-notch, with Tom, Harry and Ruth being my favorites to watch. The worst part is the long wait time for the seasons to get to the US. If the BBC would offer it online for us, I'd gladly pay to get S7 in real time! Either way, rent or buy the dvds. It's the best way to watch as they don't edit anything out, and you get a solid 60MIN per episode without commercials. A pleasant bonus is the amount of extras they include on the Season 1-3 sets. Season 4 had very few.
April 4, 2008This is one of the best drama series in the last few years. Look out for other series by the same production company if you can. Also try and buy the UK version of the DVD as the episodes for American television were only 44mins long as opposed to the UK version which is 59 mins long.
March 17, 2008More reviews at Amazon.com ...
Daily Birthdays
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