Spooks: Code 9
Encyclopedia
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reviewer Andrew Billen said the series "fancies itself as gritty and hip" and that it was "to Spooks what Torchwood
is to Doctor Who
(ie, not as good)", adding criticism of what he saw as its low budget, its combination of "state torture with a boozy, flirty This Life
house-share", and its failure of nerve in not fully linking the attack "with either the Olympics or al-Qaeda". Roland White in The Sunday Times
concluded "The script is poor and the acting little better. It's like watching recent graduates takes their first management-training exercise."
A preliminary piece in The Daily Telegraph
wondered if the series could avoid accusations of trying to cash in on Spooks despite being "a spin-off with almost nothing in common with its namesake", whilst other reviews in the same paper called the general scenario "daft and unconvincing" and too ludicrous to work as well as similar spin-offs. Though the Telegraph did find some praise for the "surprising twist" in the first episode, it lampooned the nuclear attack for having seemingly "killed everyone over the age of 40" and left MI5
"staffed purely by the young and good-looking", comparing the series' youthful cast with that of Skins
.
Internet reception by fans of the original Spooks
was generally negative, largely due to the absence of any reference to the events of the main series. A review of the first episode by website Digital Spy
found the show "utterly uninspired and stale", "shambolically written", "patronising", and "amateurish". The second episode "is certainly an improvement on the dire opener, although that's hardly a compliment." But "the entire show comes across as one of those school teachers who tries desperately to be trendy and get down wiv da kidz" and "has yet to show ...that it can transcend its current status as a piece of condescending, uninvolving tripe." However, by the sixth episode Digital Spy had detected a "stark improvement in the latter half of the first season", saying the finale "summed up the uneven nature of the season, but ultimately delivered a reasonably absorbing glimpse of a claustrophobic and panic-strewn future" that "leaves us wanting more...." But "was the budget being saved up for the grand finale? If so, that's a dodgy move indeed as ratings have shown that not many viewers have stuck around."
The Guardian
described it as "a spin-off too far", with "clunky, lazy writing", "ropey indeed.... an utterly cynical venture and a damning indictment of the lack of imagination at work in commissioning new drama," going on to say that "given its patronising awfulness, SC9 actually damages the Spooks brand." Discussing The Guardians opinion a year later, Adrian Hon (who was responsible for the Liberty News website) said "the branding plan had backfired" and if it had been launched with "a different name (i.e. not Spooks), everyone would have given the show more of a chance." In his opinion "they got it backwards": the first two episodes being "equally painful to watch", later episodes improved and episode six "really quite entertaining. In fact, the first minutes of the finale are captivating.... That’s how SC9 should’ve started."
Audience
The first episode of the series had (estimated) 810,000 viewers for a multichannel share of 3.8%, with the second episode (broadcast immediately after the first) having 703,000 viewers and 4.0% share. The third episode (broadcast a week later) attracted 447,000 viewers and 2.1% multichannel share, having "lost nearly half of its audience last night, 17 August, compared with last Sunday's launch." The fourth episode, broadcast on 24 August, attracted 288,000 viewers and 1.4% multichannel share, the fifth (31 August) having 353,000 viewers, and the sixth (7 September) 245,000.Reviews
For The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
reviewer Andrew Billen said the series "fancies itself as gritty and hip" and that it was "to Spooks what Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
is to Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
(ie, not as good)", adding criticism of what he saw as its low budget, its combination of "state torture with a boozy, flirty This Life
This Life
This Life is a BBC television drama that was produced by World Productions and screened on BBC Two. Two series were broadcast in 1996 and 1997 and a reunion special in 2007....
house-share", and its failure of nerve in not fully linking the attack "with either the Olympics or al-Qaeda". Roland White in The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
concluded "The script is poor and the acting little better. It's like watching recent graduates takes their first management-training exercise."
A preliminary piece in The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
wondered if the series could avoid accusations of trying to cash in on Spooks despite being "a spin-off with almost nothing in common with its namesake", whilst other reviews in the same paper called the general scenario "daft and unconvincing" and too ludicrous to work as well as similar spin-offs. Though the Telegraph did find some praise for the "surprising twist" in the first episode, it lampooned the nuclear attack for having seemingly "killed everyone over the age of 40" and left MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
"staffed purely by the young and good-looking", comparing the series' youthful cast with that of Skins
Skins (TV series)
Skins is a BAFTA award-winning British teen drama that follows a group of teenagers in Bristol, South West England, through the two years of college. The controversial plot line explores issues such as dysfunctional families, mental illness , adolescent sexuality, substance abuse and death...
.
Internet reception by fans of the original Spooks
Spooks
Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...
was generally negative, largely due to the absence of any reference to the events of the main series. A review of the first episode by website Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
found the show "utterly uninspired and stale", "shambolically written", "patronising", and "amateurish". The second episode "is certainly an improvement on the dire opener, although that's hardly a compliment." But "the entire show comes across as one of those school teachers who tries desperately to be trendy and get down wiv da kidz" and "has yet to show ...that it can transcend its current status as a piece of condescending, uninvolving tripe." However, by the sixth episode Digital Spy had detected a "stark improvement in the latter half of the first season", saying the finale "summed up the uneven nature of the season, but ultimately delivered a reasonably absorbing glimpse of a claustrophobic and panic-strewn future" that "leaves us wanting more...." But "was the budget being saved up for the grand finale? If so, that's a dodgy move indeed as ratings have shown that not many viewers have stuck around."
The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
described it as "a spin-off too far", with "clunky, lazy writing", "ropey indeed.... an utterly cynical venture and a damning indictment of the lack of imagination at work in commissioning new drama," going on to say that "given its patronising awfulness, SC9 actually damages the Spooks brand." Discussing The Guardians opinion a year later, Adrian Hon (who was responsible for the Liberty News website) said "the branding plan had backfired" and if it had been launched with "a different name (i.e. not Spooks), everyone would have given the show more of a chance." In his opinion "they got it backwards": the first two episodes being "equally painful to watch", later episodes improved and episode six "really quite entertaining. In fact, the first minutes of the finale are captivating.... That’s how SC9 should’ve started."