Spooks : Complete BBC Series 5 [2007] [DVD] [2002]

first off, i'm an american so my views on spooks do come from a different perspective. that being said, there is nothing the equivalent of the show on american television. we can pack the airwaves with excellent shows like lost, csi (the original), grey's anatomy, battlestar galactica and other shows of similar quality, but absolutely nothing i've seen packs the overall punch of spooks. secondly, over the last year i've discovered bbc shows in box format (bodies, coupling, talk to me and many others) and am floored by their quality. the quality of the writing and acting along with the density of the content make for better viewing. i originally picked up mi-5 here (yes, i'm aware of the controversy over the name change and will replace it with the standard uk version) and quickly fell for the whole thing hook, line, and sinker. i subsequently couldn't wait to get my hands on the rest and decided to go ahead and order them directly from the uk. i strongly believe that the end of tom quinn going from the finale of series 2 into series 3 is the finest character arch i've ever come across. i was skeptical of adam carter at first and was quickly calmed by the storytelling. the very nature of the show and cast turnover rate keeps viewers on their toes. no one is safe and no idea is safe either. having seen the princess diana storyline, i can't imagine a u.s. drama tackling an idea like that or the aftermath document from the series 5 finale. what they do is big and of the moment and they don't waste time like american dramas do. i can see why people may have reacted the way they did to adams's breakdown but they should stop and think about what he's gone thru - he's been tortured at least twice, his wife died in his arms, he's nearly been killed by a sniper, and now he has to be responsible for his son while being aware of the evils in the world. you'll go to work tomorrow and wonder what you'll make for dinner that night. a bit of a difference. i'm astonished by the gravity of the premise - there are people in our world who have to constantly be on watch to protect us from harm without our even knowing it. sorry i rambled on and on. i do miss ruth from the show and feel jo and zaf were due bigger parts, but since everyone is still alive i'll have to wait for the next boxset sometime in 2008 i guess. goodnight.

I usually don't do these reviews but I felt I had to in this case. I'm from New Zealand & we've only just finished Series Five & I have followed the series from the very beginning & I think that this is up with the rest of them. I don't know what one reviewer was referring to when they mentioned a lack of likeable characters now that Ruth has left. Who is there not to like? Adam is now what you'd call an established character who you can't help but feel sorry for as he goes through the enduring turmoil of his wife's death & how to deal with bringing up his son Wes. And what about Harry?! How can he not be a likeable character?! I think Peter Firth is one of the best cast actors on television at the moment and has made Harry his own. And as for Spooks being compared to the show 24 its like comparing a play of Shakespeare's to a play written for a school production. 24 is just Hollywood rubbish being reworked season after season. What makes Spooks such a great show is that the characters are rooted in reality and that the show focuses more on their development than the big fights or shootouts and has a great look, especially episodes 1 and 2. Finally, I hope people are greatfull they live in a country where they don't have to wait in hope that the TV networks will buy their favorite shows.

Spooks is, for my money, one of the best-made series on British TV. Every episode is so lovingly cobbled together (from the dialogue to the editing, the acting to the design, it's all top-rate) that you switch off at the end of each episode with real satisfaction and none of the usual let-down feelings of 'oh that looked a bit cheap, they hadn't really thought that through, why did they cast him/her?' that viewers of British telly these days are surely more used to. If it's not reality TV it's some shoddy, half-thought-out, one-off drama with someone from a soap opera in it, and programmes like Spooks shine out of the box like trumpet calls shouting DON'T PANIC, WE *CAN* STILL MAKE PROPER DRAMA IF WE FEEL LIKE IT! The fact that they take a whole year to make just 10 episodes speaks volumes about the quality they're aiming for, and they've always made sure that the episodes are given ample room on DVD: just 2 episodes per disc when 3 or 4 would be squeezed on (at the expense of picture quality) for most other series. So, in short, these are great slices of dramatic telly and they speak for themselves better than any review can - head over the official BBC site and watch a few of the preview video clips if you're considering buying the box sets without having seen the show before.

The DVD itself (which *does* include English subtitles, to the upset reviewer before me) is on thin ice in the DVD boxed set scheme of things. Basically it's more or less a vanilla release this time, with just three special features, all of which are very short indeed. The "exclusive behind the scenes documentary featuring interviews with the cast" (to quote the back cover) actually turns out to be called Series 5 Cast Interviews when you play the disc, and is a 12 minute discussion of the key episodes (with spoilers and clips from the whole series) with soundbites from four of the leading actors. It might be short, but it's been nicely edited and is actually rather more watchable than previous Spooks interviews, which have gone for the straight-faced, just-leave-the-camera-on-'til-they're-finished-rambling style of feature. The "sneak peek at Series 6" seems to be a sneak peek of a future DVD-bonus, as all we get is 1 minute and 20 seconds of one of the actor's video diaries (they've perhaps taken a leaf out of the Doctor Who boxed set extras for the next series), where she points a camera at a runner, a hair-dresser, another actor and a stunt co-ordinator, all of whom tell us precisely nothing about Series 6 (nor, in fact, running, hair-dressing, acting or stunt co-ordinating)! The final bonus is a compilation of all the BBC One trailers (which publicised the series launch and then a couple of key, later episodes), a few of which include specially-recorded narrative from the characters - nice to have, as always.

Compared to previous Spooks sets the extras are, frustratingly, much better produced but significantly cut-down: style over substance, it would seem, a reversal from the previous sets! If you're looking for behind-the-scenes footage, quiet and non-flashy interviews with directors and producers, deleted scenes, PDFs of the scripts, sober audio commentaries on all episodes (there are just 2 on this set), episode-specific featurettes and simple mini-documentaries on the music, editing and writing, you'll be needed the sets of Series 1, 2 and 3. Maybe they feel that everything's already been said, and that nothing new could be documented, but it's a tad disappointing to have such a beautifully packaged box set with so little content that hasn't already been on TV for free.