Queer as Folk - Series 2 (British TV Series)

Rating:
Summary: Nots as good as Series 1, but still rocks !
Review: I bought the DVD and I know the series pretty well.
Series 1 was really original at that time and somehow darker than its US counterpart.
Series 2 is a kind of tale that aims at closing the series with a tacky but emotional twist.

Rating:
Summary: I held my breath...
Review: I found myself holding my breath at times during this final part of the series. The story line is bold, quite disturbing at times, even alarming. It's not happily ever after. But I LOVED IT. I couldn't believe how exciting it was. It's not what you expect. If you want a gushy love story, go back and read Gordon Merrick. This, however, may shake you up a bit.

Rating:
Summary: disappointing
Review: I have never seen the American version, but I loved the original British "Queer as Folk". It was funny and real. I didn't just believe in these characters, I felt like I knew them. Series 2 is more than a disappointment, it is almost a betrayal. It is not just that the action seems contrived, but so do the characters. I couldn't believe a minute of it. If you were a fan of series 1 you will probably have to see series 2, maybe with lowered expectations you will enjoy it more than I did.

Rating:
Summary: Not for us
Review: I have never seen the British version, but we liked the American "Queer as Folk". It was funny and real. Series 2 is a disappointment, the action seems contrived, and so do the characters. We couldn't believe a minute of it. If you are a fan of the American version you will probably have to have lowered expectations to enjoy this.

Rating:
Summary: I love this show!!
Review: I just started watching Queer as Folk a few months ago and I'm hooked. I think Gale Harold is one of the sexiest men I've ever seen. Hal Sparks is also a cutey and the guy who plays Emmett is adorable. This show is so choice. If you have the means I highly recommend picking up the video.

Rating:
Summary: Queer as ever
Review: I loved it!!!! Simular to the American counterpart; different names etc. Stuart=Brian; Vince=Michael, Nathan=Justin. Stewart is much darker and sinister than Brian; even going as far as blowing up a car;(I loved that scene)and confronting his relative who is trying to blackmail him. Its a bit difficult understanding the British lingo at times but if you watch foreign films you come to expect this. Nathan is 16 and as cute as Justin, has a face to face confrontation with his instructor in a prep school over his sexuality that truely has to be seen to be appreciated. The American version has more of a plot to it but, British version has more intense scenes which I enjoyed. A good film to have in your collection and I plan to purchase all of the British versions of QAF.





Rating:
Summary: A Disappointing Follow-Up
Review: I loved the original Queer as Folk series. Great characters. Interesting plots. Terrific writing and performances. And, although Stuart was a truly reprehensible character, he was fascinating to watch and I believed him. On top of that, as someone who works in the comic book industry professionally and was a Doctor Who fan in my youth, I identified with Vince (perhaps a little too much on too many levels). I was so caught up in the original series on DVD that I watched the last four episodes in one sitting; I found it that compelling.

I couldn't wait to see the follow-up. I have to admit that I came away very disappointed. There were numerous individual scenes that were powerful and/or funny, but they were not bound by a cohesive plot nor by consistent characterization.

If I were to sum it up in one quick explanation, I would say it suffers from the "Broadway Damage" syndrome. ("Broadway Damage" is a gay romantic comedy which is a flawed movie that I still enjoy. The biggest problem is that the movie has the ending that the audience wants it to have, but does not make sense in the context of the characters as they are presented. "Free Enterprise" suffers from a similar problem.) In this case, the movie has the ending that I think the author thought the audience would want, but to be honest, I thought it was wrong on many levels. (Or, perhaps it's the ending the author wanted it to have, but didn't know how to get there in a believable way.)

I should also note that the blurb on the back of the DVD packaging paints a much different picture of the contents than is what is actually contained in the 90 minute movie. The description makes the movie sound like a suspenseful thriller, which it is not. The blackmail plot, while one of the more interesting elements, is merely a subplot that totals maybe eight minutes of screen time. And the whole "Stuart crossing the law for revenge" element is not anything like it sounds, and does NOT tie into the blackmail plot directly. (Such as it is, it's also not one of the more believable elements, either.)

I find it curious that writer Russell T. Davies, who created such rich, interesting, and believable characters for the first series could undermine them so thoroughly in the follow-up. Not only does Stuart spin completely out of control to the point of being unbelievable even in the context of Stuart (his whole "revenge" plot doesn't make much sense in terms of his character. His motivation is murky at best, and I didn't buy it at all). Hazel and Bernie stoop to illegal activities in order to help Vince in what I believe was intended to be a humorous side story, but only succeeded in undermining their characters. Nathan shows brief glimpses of a working brain, but remains more dedicated to his reproductive organs (which is in keeping with his character, so I can't object to this). And Vince--well, he doesn't seem to learn anything. Every time it would appear that he has finally grown up and realized that his obsession with Stuart is unhealthy and counterproductive, he immediately caves in and goes back to being whipping boy/lap dog. It all leads to a conclusion that I didn't like nor believe.

The cast remains charismatic, in spite of the material with which they are given to work. The direction is solid. The sheer filmmaking of the final scene in Manchester was visually interesting (although I kept wanting to hear the sound of Doctor Who's TARDIS in order to tie the images together with Vince's character, but alas, such was not to be. At least that would have tied elements together, although how many people outside of the UK would have understood that reference is questionable). The editing was solid. Locations well chosen (although I'm not convinced they used the same set for Stuart's apartment. It didn't look the same to me. I did miss seeing Vince's home. He was defined only by his job in this installment). All in all, a well produced movie, but at its core is a script that doesn't quite work. Too bad, really.

Stick to the original. A great investment of time and money. Rent the follow up first to be sure you want to purchase it.

Rating:
Summary: A Disappointing Follow-Up
Review: I loved the original Queer as Folk series. Great characters. Interesting plots. Terrific writing and performances. And, although Stuart was a truly reprehensible character, he was fascinating to watch and I believed him. On top of that, as someone who works in the comic book industry professionally and was a Doctor Who fan in my youth, I identified with Vince (perhaps a little too much on too many levels). I was so caught up in the original series on DVD that I watched the last four episodes in one sitting; I found it that compelling.

I couldn't wait to see the follow-up. I have to admit that I came away very disappointed. There were numerous individual scenes that were powerful and/or funny, but they were not bound by a cohesive plot nor by consistent characterization.

If I were to sum it up in one quick explanation, I would say it suffers from the "Broadway Damage" syndrome. ("Broadway Damage" is a gay romantic comedy which is a flawed movie that I still enjoy. The biggest problem is that the movie has the ending that the audience wants it to have, but does not make sense in the context of the characters as they are presented. "Free Enterprise" suffers from a similar problem.) In this case, the movie has the ending that I think the author thought the audience would want, but to be honest, I thought it was wrong on many levels. (Or, perhaps it's the ending the author wanted it to have, but didn't know how to get there in a believable way.)

I should also note that the blurb on the back of the DVD packaging paints a much different picture of the contents than is what is actually contained in the 90 minute movie. The description makes the movie sound like a suspenseful thriller, which it is not. The blackmail plot, while one of the more interesting elements, is merely a subplot that totals maybe eight minutes of screen time. And the whole "Stuart crossing the law for revenge" element is not anything like it sounds, and does NOT tie into the blackmail plot directly. (Such as it is, it's also not one of the more believable elements, either.)

I find it curious that writer Russell T. Davies, who created such rich, interesting, and believable characters for the first series could undermine them so thoroughly in the follow-up. Not only does Stuart spin completely out of control to the point of being unbelievable even in the context of Stuart (his whole "revenge" plot doesn't make much sense in terms of his character. His motivation is murky at best, and I didn't buy it at all). Hazel and Bernie stoop to illegal activities in order to help Vince in what I believe was intended to be a humorous side story, but only succeeded in undermining their characters. Nathan shows brief glimpses of a working brain, but remains more dedicated to his reproductive organs (which is in keeping with his character, so I can't object to this). And Vince--well, he doesn't seem to learn anything. Every time it would appear that he has finally grown up and realized that his obsession with Stuart is unhealthy and counterproductive, he immediately caves in and goes back to being whipping boy/lap dog. It all leads to a conclusion that I didn't like nor believe.

The cast remains charismatic, in spite of the material with which they are given to work. The direction is solid. The sheer filmmaking of the final scene in Manchester was visually interesting (although I kept wanting to hear the sound of Doctor Who's TARDIS in order to tie the images together with Vince's character, but alas, such was not to be. At least that would have tied elements together, although how many people outside of the UK would have understood that reference is questionable). The editing was solid. Locations well chosen (although I'm not convinced they used the same set for Stuart's apartment. It didn't look the same to me. I did miss seeing Vince's home. He was defined only by his job in this installment). All in all, a well produced movie, but at its core is a script that doesn't quite work. Too bad, really.

Stick to the original. A great investment of time and money. Rent the follow up first to be sure you want to purchase it.

Rating:
Summary: Worth watching for QAF fans
Review: I thought this was an excellent follow up to the first series. Sure, it was a little outlandish at the end (the Thelma and Louise feel to it was amusing), but the characters are so endearing, complicated, sympathetic, and appealing that I still enjoyed every minute of it. I was disappointed and incredulous that there was only one disk in the box, as I expected to get another four episodes out of "Series 2" -- sadly, it was just one movie. But it did wrap up a lot of the strands from the first series, and I felt satisfied by the weird ending. For fans of the first series, I think it is well worth watching. (If you weren't a fan already, there's no point.)

I prefer this series to the American version any day of the week -- but then, I am generally a fan of British film and TV, and I generally hate American TV. So there's my bias. Also, I watched the British version first, so I was already digging the Brits before I started watching the American series. Brian and Michael were doomed from the start for me -- they just can't measure up to Stuart and Vince, in my book.

Rating:
Summary: Worth watching for QAF fans
Review: I thought this was an excellent follow up to the first series. Sure, it was a little outlandish at the end (the Thelma and Louise feel to it was amusing), but the characters are so endearing, complicated, sympathetic, and appealing that I still enjoyed every minute of it. I was disappointed and incredulous that there was only one disk in the box, as I expected to get another four episodes out of "Series 2" -- sadly, it was just one movie. But it did wrap up a lot of the strands from the first series, and I felt satisfied by the weird ending. For fans of the first series, I think it is well worth watching. (If you weren't a fan already, there's no point.)

I prefer this series to the American version any day of the week -- but then, I am generally a fan of British film and TV, and I generally hate American TV. So there's my bias. Also, I watched the British version first, so I was already digging the Brits before I started watching the American series. Brian and Michael were doomed from the start for me -- they just can't measure up to Stuart and Vince, in my book.