463 – War of the Worlds (BBC, 2019)

It’s time once again for another re-telling of the classic, timeless tale by H.G. Wells, War of the Worlds.  This time the BBC have hired Peter Harness, acclaimed writer of Doctor Who’s Kill the Moon to put his unique spin on this beloved tale. Simon and Eugene discuss. Episode Synopsis: It’s War of the Worlds, you know it already it. In fact, do we even need to bother? A question the writer of this adaptation no doubt asked himself many a time, but like him, let’s be precursory and get it over with so we can move on with what we want to say. Martians come to Earth and land on Horsell Common, where they cross paths with a pair of cohabitating, unmarried, fornicating socialists, and also the Secretary of the Minister of War who happens to be the estranged brother of one the the aforementioned cohabitating, unmarried, fornicating socialist. They get separated, they travel, they come back together, and travel some more as the Martian colonial war machine tramples the might of the British Empire under it’s spiky boots. Then the truth comes out. The Martians are eating human, but it gives them a tummy ache and the die, but not before everyone in our largely uninteresting band of fellow travelers is killed and eaten, except for Amy and her unborn child, George Junior. Years in the future, Amy roams the wastelands of an Earth turned into a Martian surrogate. It is a world of infertile red Earth, Martian weeds, red skies and a sun that is mysteriously millions of miles further distant than it should be. Amy, and her son, are searching for her missing husband. And when I say husband, I actually mean her cohabitating, unmarried, fornicating socialist partner who’s actually been dead the entire time, and she’s known it all along, but her sad, pathetic existence has no point but to keep looking. When word comes through the grapevine that her husband has been found and is returning, she dares hope, despite the fact that she knows him to be dead for years. It turns out it’s Ogilvy, a minor character from the early part of the story who, for probably plot and economic reasons is both the chemist this ruined world needs right now and the astronomer that discovered the Martian launches and the first Martian landing. The Earth is dying, George Junior is dying, the Village is dying, babies aren’t happening, crops won’t grow except in graveyards and the remnants of humanity are falling into jingoistic patriotic and religious mindsets to explain the world around them. But Amy’s got an idea. Maybe it’s the Typhoid that killed the Martians and maybe Ogilvy can make a serum which they can use as a Martian weed killer. Which he does, and it works, but the village leader won’t hear of such nonsense! That’s not in keeping with the narrative that God and the good ol’ British Tommy defeated the aliens. That night she smashes it all up, but sees a green plant, and gets religion. Then end.