As far as 'Taggart' goes, the Taggart period was by far the best. It may have been slower in pace compared to later episodes, but they were also more twisty, grittier and with more interesting characters. The earlier Jardine period episodes were almost as good, while becoming less consistent in his later episodes. Was generally far less taken with the Burke period, despite it seeming to air more when 'Taggart' is shown on television, and none of his previous episodes (as lead) impressed me that much.
"Hard Man" did nothing to change my mind on that, even when adopting a change of pace with focus on one murder. A change of pace that didn't come over as a particularly good or necessary one, do not mind or have any problems with changes of pace but it is a problem for me when it's one that feels too different and like it belonged somewhere else. "Hard Man" had all the problems of the previous Burke period episodes pretty much, certainly those of "The Friday Event", while with others too, on top of it not really feeling like 'Taggart'.
There are good things. The photography still has grit and moodiness, perfect for the tone of the show, and the bleak setting is captured on camera well. The music isn't constant or intrusive which is good, again the mood is captured spot on. The main theme is still a classic.
While the story could have been much better, there are intriguing moments early on. Jackie has some great lines and liked her chemistry with Robbie, both authoritative and witty. Blythe Duff shows perfectly why she is one of my main reasons for sticking with the show despite not being a fan of the direction it was going at this point. John Michie and Colin McCredie are credible too.
However, the odd nice line aside, Burke is still doing little for me. He is not as much of a bully here in "Hard Man" but the character is in serious need of more subtlety. There is chemistry between the team, especially between Jackie and Robbie, but it doesn't have the same amount of spark as before (i.e. Jackie and Jardine). The script has its moments at least, a marginal improvement from the previous Burke episodes, but the bite and tautness is still missing and could have done with more development.
From personal view too, the bigger emphasis on the action was not particularly a good thing. It was not particularly thrilling or had much momentum, and the tone doesn't feel right. Somehow it doesn't feel like 'Taggart' and like the writers had just watched an American procedural and had it fresh in their minds. "Hard Man" managed to feel both tired and over-stuffed. There is a sense that the show was running out of ideas at this point, and it was starting to, and the scenario came over as over-familiar. Was not really surprised by the truth (which could have been revealed later than it was), regardless of how many twists there were to me it was not that hard to figure out with suspects too few on top of that. The episode tries to cram in too much, the turns in the plot actually complicating it with too little time to take it all in.
Concluding, alright but lacking at the same time. 5/10
"Hard Man" did nothing to change my mind on that, even when adopting a change of pace with focus on one murder. A change of pace that didn't come over as a particularly good or necessary one, do not mind or have any problems with changes of pace but it is a problem for me when it's one that feels too different and like it belonged somewhere else. "Hard Man" had all the problems of the previous Burke period episodes pretty much, certainly those of "The Friday Event", while with others too, on top of it not really feeling like 'Taggart'.
There are good things. The photography still has grit and moodiness, perfect for the tone of the show, and the bleak setting is captured on camera well. The music isn't constant or intrusive which is good, again the mood is captured spot on. The main theme is still a classic.
While the story could have been much better, there are intriguing moments early on. Jackie has some great lines and liked her chemistry with Robbie, both authoritative and witty. Blythe Duff shows perfectly why she is one of my main reasons for sticking with the show despite not being a fan of the direction it was going at this point. John Michie and Colin McCredie are credible too.
However, the odd nice line aside, Burke is still doing little for me. He is not as much of a bully here in "Hard Man" but the character is in serious need of more subtlety. There is chemistry between the team, especially between Jackie and Robbie, but it doesn't have the same amount of spark as before (i.e. Jackie and Jardine). The script has its moments at least, a marginal improvement from the previous Burke episodes, but the bite and tautness is still missing and could have done with more development.
From personal view too, the bigger emphasis on the action was not particularly a good thing. It was not particularly thrilling or had much momentum, and the tone doesn't feel right. Somehow it doesn't feel like 'Taggart' and like the writers had just watched an American procedural and had it fresh in their minds. "Hard Man" managed to feel both tired and over-stuffed. There is a sense that the show was running out of ideas at this point, and it was starting to, and the scenario came over as over-familiar. Was not really surprised by the truth (which could have been revealed later than it was), regardless of how many twists there were to me it was not that hard to figure out with suspects too few on top of that. The episode tries to cram in too much, the turns in the plot actually complicating it with too little time to take it all in.
Concluding, alright but lacking at the same time. 5/10
