ashes to ashes

I've been watching the first series of Life on Mars again over the last few weeks, and marvelling once again at how brilliant it is; and all this is making me quite excited about the impending arrival of Ashes to Ashes, the 80s spin off which focuses on Gene Hunt and a new time-travelling companion - in this instance the rather dishy Keeley Hawes, which goes some way towards making up for the loss of John Simm's Sam Tyler.

Now that Ashes to Ashes is close, a couple of early reviews and previews are being published, making it easier to imagine the show. My feeling is that it will be quite different from Life On Mars, and these two previews bear that out. The first, courtesy of Ian Wylie at the Manchester Evening News, contains a few spoilers but is broadly positive. The second, a rather more objective response from The Times' Andrew Billen, is more cautious and negative, complaining that the new show is too glib and, bluntly, a parody of a parody. Discouraging words, and yet I can't help thinking the full series will prove Billen wrong, and be another success.