ENVIRONMENTAL! Burn Up, BBC Two, 9.00pm
Hey kids, did you know that the environment was in trouble? If you were paying attention to eco-warrior cartoon Captain Planet about twenty years ago, then yes, you probably did. But in case you hadn’t got the message, the BBC are packaging Captain Planet’s eco-message for an adult generation in new drama Burn Up.
Cynicism about preachy issue-based television aside, this could be a promising drama. It is a UK/US/Canada collaboration which means big budget and big(ish) names: Rupert Penry Jones, Marc Warren and Neve Campbell are among the luminaries here.
Having not seen this, I can’t tell you whether it is drama in the Last Enemy mould or the Bonekickers one, but it should be watchable enough.
As with other such ‘event’ dramas, all episodes are scheduled within the same week: fortunately there are only two episodes, tonight’s and Friday’s, which means it will be easier to catch than the five-nightly-stripped likes of Criminal Justice.
As for what it’s about – well, we’re promised a thriller, with characters involved in the worlds of politics, big business and environmental lobbying.
If you are only going to watched one eco-themed drama this year make it Wall-E. If you can stretch to two, this one is probably worth a couple of hours of your time.
