Something interesting happening here. . .
I just watched the first three episodes of "Life On Mars" (A police detective in 2008 is struck by a car and wakes up in 1973. He joins the police force in that time period.)
And there's another new show called, "Life". (A police officer, detective Cruz, spent 12 years in prison for a crime he was not guilty of, and is released again with a substantial settlement. He rejoins the police force, carrying with him the Zen practices he learned while in prison to stay sane.)
Both, I suspect, are attempts to seed the public with an awareness of reality shifts and ease certain elements of High-Strangeness. That's my current guess on the matter, anyway.
--There's also another new show which a friend described to me; I can't remember what it's called, but it's also about time travel into the past; a woman is able to revisit points in her own time-line, (through magical therapy or something), and re-do events she lived through. (I've not looked into this one, so that assessment is second-hand). In any case, there appears to be a definite trend in popular fiction at the moment.
Anyway, I noticed some really neat commonalities between "Life on Mars"(LoM), and "Life".
--The main character in LoM has adopted a sort of Zen attitude towards reality. In the third episode, he's acting and saying things just like Detective Cruz, (from "Life"). They're very similar characters, similar behavioral traits and attitudes.
The supporting cast is very similar. Their bosses, both crusty alpha males, both act in a similar manner. And their relationship to their respective main characters is pretty much identical. I've attached a couple of screen captures for comparison, because they even look the same.
The detective in LoM is partnering with a female cop which is similar to Cruz's female partner, "Detective Reese", (though the girl in LoM is much more soft around the edges, each are supportive and each provide material for scenes where the nature of reality is discussed in a very similar manner.)
Also, the basic metaphor between the two shows is the same.
In both shows, it's about police, (authority figures, which the viewing public is programmed to respect and take guidance from; alpha males have that effect, so it's easier to adopt the attitudes portrayed). In both shows, the key character has traveled through time and a transformative process. --In Cruz's case, (in "Life"), he was in a metaphoric 'time lock' for 12 years, (in prison), and returns to the world, confused by the things which have changed while he was away. In LoM, it's actual time travel, and the resulting confusion is the same.
Both have kind and positive attitudes toward life. --In "Life", Cruz is a Zen preacher of sorts, (though not hard selling it; he's a novice but with an enthusiastic, curious attitude; not a hard sell, which I think would be off-putting to the public). In LoM, the main character makes a stand against police violence, against negative attitudes toward Gays and Women in the work place. --These are strong themes, especially in 1973.
In LoM, there is also a strong vision-quest element which is shared in "Life". --There are lots of little moments in LoM when the nature of reality is questioned; "is the world a dream or is it real?"; those kinds of questions are normally very hard to sell; they are laughed at by the public which has been programmed to resist that kind of thinking at all costs. How do you get past the fear-guard which has been so mercilessly baked into the mind-set of people. (Laughing at UFO's and the metaphysical world, but here those ideas are carefully packaged to be more easily digested.)
Also, the word, "Mars" in "Life on Mars" is really odd. --What a strange thing to put in the title; very out-of-place, but. . , given the whole alien awareness angle and our society's current fascination with the red planet. . . I see the title as a subtle bit of programming; "This is how Life on Mars view the world." (--Which might actually a little creepy, now that I think of it.)
A very, very interesting trend, I thought.
Cheers!
EDIT******************
I just started going through the 4th episode of "Life on Mars" and another connection just jumped out at me.
The main character's name is "Sam Tyler" --In the 4th episode, he meets his mother in 1973. Her name is "Rose Tyler".
Now for any Doctor Who fans, this will immediately ring as significant. --Rose Tyler was also the name of a very key character in Doctor Who, from season 1 and 2, with a big return appearance at the tail end of the 4th season. Rose Tyler, aside from being the Doctor's companion, which makes her a time traveler and uniquely aware individual, became rather more than that. By the end of the series, she was a dimension/reality jumper, affecting the history of the world in a significant way. I find it VERY interesting that she should be the mother of the main character in "Life on Mars". Connections, connections! What ARE those psychic projectors up to?
For more on the whole phenomenon of Psychic Projectors, please refer to this thread. . .
http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=11824.msg84425#msg84425
Cheers!
I just watched the first three episodes of "Life On Mars" (A police detective in 2008 is struck by a car and wakes up in 1973. He joins the police force in that time period.)
And there's another new show called, "Life". (A police officer, detective Cruz, spent 12 years in prison for a crime he was not guilty of, and is released again with a substantial settlement. He rejoins the police force, carrying with him the Zen practices he learned while in prison to stay sane.)
Both, I suspect, are attempts to seed the public with an awareness of reality shifts and ease certain elements of High-Strangeness. That's my current guess on the matter, anyway.
--There's also another new show which a friend described to me; I can't remember what it's called, but it's also about time travel into the past; a woman is able to revisit points in her own time-line, (through magical therapy or something), and re-do events she lived through. (I've not looked into this one, so that assessment is second-hand). In any case, there appears to be a definite trend in popular fiction at the moment.
Anyway, I noticed some really neat commonalities between "Life on Mars"(LoM), and "Life".
--The main character in LoM has adopted a sort of Zen attitude towards reality. In the third episode, he's acting and saying things just like Detective Cruz, (from "Life"). They're very similar characters, similar behavioral traits and attitudes.
The supporting cast is very similar. Their bosses, both crusty alpha males, both act in a similar manner. And their relationship to their respective main characters is pretty much identical. I've attached a couple of screen captures for comparison, because they even look the same.
The detective in LoM is partnering with a female cop which is similar to Cruz's female partner, "Detective Reese", (though the girl in LoM is much more soft around the edges, each are supportive and each provide material for scenes where the nature of reality is discussed in a very similar manner.)
Also, the basic metaphor between the two shows is the same.
In both shows, it's about police, (authority figures, which the viewing public is programmed to respect and take guidance from; alpha males have that effect, so it's easier to adopt the attitudes portrayed). In both shows, the key character has traveled through time and a transformative process. --In Cruz's case, (in "Life"), he was in a metaphoric 'time lock' for 12 years, (in prison), and returns to the world, confused by the things which have changed while he was away. In LoM, it's actual time travel, and the resulting confusion is the same.
Both have kind and positive attitudes toward life. --In "Life", Cruz is a Zen preacher of sorts, (though not hard selling it; he's a novice but with an enthusiastic, curious attitude; not a hard sell, which I think would be off-putting to the public). In LoM, the main character makes a stand against police violence, against negative attitudes toward Gays and Women in the work place. --These are strong themes, especially in 1973.
In LoM, there is also a strong vision-quest element which is shared in "Life". --There are lots of little moments in LoM when the nature of reality is questioned; "is the world a dream or is it real?"; those kinds of questions are normally very hard to sell; they are laughed at by the public which has been programmed to resist that kind of thinking at all costs. How do you get past the fear-guard which has been so mercilessly baked into the mind-set of people. (Laughing at UFO's and the metaphysical world, but here those ideas are carefully packaged to be more easily digested.)
Also, the word, "Mars" in "Life on Mars" is really odd. --What a strange thing to put in the title; very out-of-place, but. . , given the whole alien awareness angle and our society's current fascination with the red planet. . . I see the title as a subtle bit of programming; "This is how Life on Mars view the world." (--Which might actually a little creepy, now that I think of it.)
A very, very interesting trend, I thought.
Cheers!
EDIT******************
I just started going through the 4th episode of "Life on Mars" and another connection just jumped out at me.
The main character's name is "Sam Tyler" --In the 4th episode, he meets his mother in 1973. Her name is "Rose Tyler".
Now for any Doctor Who fans, this will immediately ring as significant. --Rose Tyler was also the name of a very key character in Doctor Who, from season 1 and 2, with a big return appearance at the tail end of the 4th season. Rose Tyler, aside from being the Doctor's companion, which makes her a time traveler and uniquely aware individual, became rather more than that. By the end of the series, she was a dimension/reality jumper, affecting the history of the world in a significant way. I find it VERY interesting that she should be the mother of the main character in "Life on Mars". Connections, connections! What ARE those psychic projectors up to?
For more on the whole phenomenon of Psychic Projectors, please refer to this thread. . .
http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=11824.msg84425#msg84425
Cheers!
