The angel Aziraphale and the demon Crowley meet for the first time in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve are expelled from the Garden after Crowley tempts them with an apple, and Aziraphale is the angel who prohibits their return ... though he does sneakily give them his flaming sword so they will have some protection in the journeys.
Despite being on opposite sides of the 'great conflict', the angel and the demon strike up a secret friendship. Both feel some affection for humanity and its achievements - Aziraphale, for instance, is a major foodie, while Crowley loves fast cars and loud music.
Fast forward a few thousand years, and Crowley is tasked with delivering the Antichrist to a Satanic Convent. The child will then be raised by an American diplomat and his family, and usher in Armageddon itself. This is the culmination of centuries of careful planning.
But you know what they say about plans. A second new mother is at the convent on the same night, and it is this small town, middle class English family that ends up with the Antichrist in their care.
How will this impact the Armageddon, and when push comes to shove, do either Aziraphale or Crowley actually want the world to end? It has all their favourite things in it, after all!
Based on the novel of the same name, written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Good Omens is a tongue-in-cheek account of the Apocalypse (or rather - of course - the narrow avoidance of the Apocalypse). It has been 30 years since I read the book but based on my recollections, this seems like a pretty faithful adaptation. Certainly I feel it shares some of the same issues I saw with the novel: there are definitely times it feels a little bit smug about its own cleverness, and it tries to wedge an awful lot of stuff into its run time, sometimes to the detriment of the overall pace and structure of the tale. Much of the Witchfinder stuff for instance. While I understand that it has a thematic purpose - capturing both the banality of evil, as well as the way that grand plans can come unstuck due to overlooking very prosaic details - I think it takes up rather more screen time than it really needs to.
Based on the novel of the same name, written by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Good Omens is a tongue-in-cheek account of the Apocalypse (or rather - of course - the narrow avoidance of the Apocalypse). It has been 30 years since I read the book but based on my recollections, this seems like a pretty faithful adaptation. Certainly I feel it shares some of the same issues I saw with the novel: there are definitely times it feels a little bit smug about its own cleverness, and it tries to wedge an awful lot of stuff into its run time, sometimes to the detriment of the overall pace and structure of the tale. Much of the Witchfinder stuff for instance. While I understand that it has a thematic purpose - capturing both the banality of evil, as well as the way that grand plans can come unstuck due to overlooking very prosaic details - I think it takes up rather more screen time than it really needs to.
Good Omens does, however, profit from strong casting on the central roles of Crowley and Aziraphale. While I grew tired of David Tennant's run on Doctor Who, that was much more a product of the writing than anything else. He's certainly good in this, and his Crowley is well matched by Michael Sheen's Aziraphale.
If you enjoy witty - if occasionally slightly self-satisfied - and irreverent comedies, or have enjoyed Pratchett or Gaiman's books in the past, then this is worth checking out.
I'm really not convinced about the reports of a season two: it seems a bit redundant and unnecessary to continue the story. Fortunately, this series was originally conceived as a standalone, and wraps up neatly, so you can safely watch it as a "one and done" experience.
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