I originally posted this as a thread on twitter. To my shock and joy, Neil Gaiman retweeted it with this comment.
So I thought I’d make it my first post here.
THREAD: As I’ve become mildly obsessed with #GoodOmensPrime, I’ve been giving some thought as to why.
To begin … the book. I bought my first copy in 1991. It now looks somewhat tattered and extremely well-loved because it’s been read so often.
It’s still holding together only because I bought a hardback and another pb to lend. It has been one of my go-to books at times when I need to be reminded that the world is a good place and that there is so much to enjoy in life. Including the writers’ wicked sense of humour.
Then there is the fact that @neilhimself not only wrote the screenplay, but kept close control of the whole process to ensure it was true to what the wonderful #SirTerryPratchett would have wanted.
This included making it crystal clear that the emotional heart of the tale is the love story between Crowley and Aziraphale; that although being angels (fallen and otherwise) they may express love differently to any human love, it is still a love story.
Then there was the casting. Because really … not only #DavidTennant but also @MichaelSheen. How could that possibly be any better? From the first moment that they announced the casting for these roles, I was slavering in anticipation.
There is the use of Queen’s music. I love Queen. I was at their first big concert at the Rainbow in 1974. I loved the joke in the book about tapes in Crowley’s car turning into the Best of Queen. So many songs are absolutely right for the soundtrack and most of them are in there.
There is also a simply wonderful original score, especially the main theme. Either Michael or David said that when you first hear it it seems like something you’ve always known, and that’s true. I’ve reached the point where as soon as I hear it I start to smile.
The show itself is six hours of pure joy. I believe that the love that went into making it – @neilhimself’s love for Sir Terry, the love of so many people for the book, all simply glow from the screen. That love has transformed the series into something unique.
It has created a type of television experience I’ve never had before. The first sequence ends with a little snippet of Aziraphale sheltering Crowley under his wing that just brings me undone every time I see it because it seems to radiate tenderness and goodness.
The show has some very funny moments, many of them between Crowley and Aziraphale, but by no means all.
It has a number of little “Easter eggs” of Terry Pratchett tributes – his infamous hat hangs in Aziraphale’s book shop, his name appears on a video game screen, and there are a number of others.
It also encourages thought about serious issues. As Gabriel’s role in bringing about Armageddon unfolded, I for one realised that the story clearly demonstrates that unquestioning obedience to anyone, to anything, is simply a form of fascism.
And for a Christian, that raises some very serious questions. Perhaps it does for any religion. Even for agnostics and atheists. Being absolutely sure you are 100% right and justified is incredibly dangerous and almost certainly means that you are going incredibly wrong.
However, the show does not take a hammer to any of these points that it raises, it just lets them float through your mind if you’ve got the kind of mind that welcomes such thoughts, and leaves you to ponder them at your leisure.
Along the way there are many laughs, a few “ooh”s, a couple of “ah”s, an “oops” or two and more than a sprinkling of “awww”s.
There is a wonderful long sequence showing the angel/ demon relationship through the ages. This includes an Arthurian scene and one at the Globe theatre for the first performance of Hamlet. These are two of my favourite literary “things” and I loved that they were included here.
A particular joy for me is that towards the end there is a Crowley/ Aziraphale scene filmed in one of my favourite parts of London – Tavistock Square. I’ve spent many hours in this square, reading, resting, writing, contemplating the universe.
In the centre is a statue of Gandhi which has become like a little shrine; there are nearly always flowers there and it has become imbued with the peace and serenity you would expect from such a space. (You can just see the Gandhi statue in the background of the scene.)
And then there’s the final Aziraphale/ Crowley scene at the Ritz … performed to the background music of “A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square”. It’s a delicious scene – sweet and a little bit funny and just about ridiculously romantic.
These two might be an angel and a demon and therefore the love between them may not be expressed in physical ways, but it is there, and in this scene it is clearly manifested. Underlined by the unashamed romanticism of the song lyrics.
It is the perfect finish to a wonderful show. Something that shows us what TV and movies can be when they do not go down the well worn paths of either dwelling on darkness and violence or else tipping over into mindless saccharine.
I can only say that I strongly recommend it to everyone. I promise you, you will not regret taking time to watch it. It will repay you with a lift to the spirits, with many smiles, and with a very gentle touch to your heart. “To the world”, indeed.
andulkaphoto
tangentwithtanner
snowghoul
titsay
yousharknotpass
