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Neil Gaimen
is a name that should be a household word.
Well, I would guess it is in some households.
Of course many of those households are probably
located in the deepest darkest crevices
of most neighborhoods. Like mine. You see
Gaimen is a prolific writer, but his work
tends to lean towards the twisted and bizarre.
His is an imagination on the edge, and his
work generally appeals most to those whose
minds dwell in that same neck of the woods.
Over his long career, Gaimen has written
comics, novels and most recently screenplays,
most of which have won, or at least been
nominated for, every major writing award
in the sci-fi world. He is probably best
known for the creation of the comic book
“Sandman”, and most recently
has received acclaim for his novel, “American
Gods” (which is currently sitting
on my nightstand waiting to be read). And
if all that wasn’t enough, he also
wrote the English language script for Hayao
Miyazaki’s enormously popular “Princess
Mononoke”, as well as “The Day
of the Dead”, the one and only episode
in the last three season’s of “Babylon
5” not written by series creator J.
Michael Straczynski.
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In 1996, Gaimen, along with comic Lenny Henry,
created a six-part series for the BBC called “Neverwhere.”
It was followed up by a novel set in the world
created by the series, and the hope of a feature
film to be eventually filmed by Jim Henson Productions
(which would seriously rock if it ever got off
the ground).
“Neverwhere” follows the ‘adventures’
of Richard Mayhew (Gary Bakewell), an ad executive
whose life is less than appealing. His adventure
begins one night when he comes to the aid of a
mysterious woman named, oddly enough, Door (Laura
Fraser). He helps her home, and finds that she
had barely escaped being murdered by two assassins.
Once it is discovered that the two haven’t
quite given up, Richard offers to hide Door.
This might seem all pretty up front as far as
stories go, but it just gets weirder from there.
When he returns to work the next day, he finds
that no one seems to know who he is. Turns out
he has somehow become a resident of London Below,
and for all intents and purposes, no longer exists
in the world he once knew.
The six half-hour episodes of “Neverwhere”
have been brought together on DVD by the folks
at A&E Home Entertainment in a 2-disc set
boxed set. I was vaguely familiar with the series,
but had never had the opportunity to see it. It
took the better part of an afternoon, but was
completely worth the time. “Neverwhere”
is a highly inspired piece of work. The story,
characters and locations are severely twisted
and unique, and completely appealed to my darker
tastes.
The only weakness I could find with the series
came in the form of budgetary constraints. The
special effects and sets could have looked much
better if more money had been available. But the
story itself is more than good enough to make
up for these few shortcomings. I also wish the
series could have been longer, which might have
allowed a more detailed story.
There are few extras included on the set, but
they are all worthwhile. The commentary by Gaimen
has its moments, but the early BBC interview is
priceless (at least to Gaimen fans).
“Neverwhere” is going to appeal most
to those who already know and enjoy Gaimen’s
style. It is, of course, very British in nature,
so if you’re a BBC watching kind of person
you’ll more than likely get as much of a
kick out of this series as I did.
Directed by: Dewi Humphreys
Starring: Gary Bakewell, Laura Fraser, Clive Russell,
Paterson Joseph, Freddie Jones
Extras: Commentary with Creator Neil Gaimen, The
Original BBC Neil Gamen Interview, Neil Gamen
Interview, Character Descriptions, Photo Gallery
Specifications: Dolby Stereo
Studio: A&E
Release Date: 9/9/2003
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
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Website 2
We'll give Neverwhere a B-.
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