Una y otra vez (Life After Life)

I didn't have any knowledge about the show's source material and I have never read the book, so I basically started watching this show out of boredom. However, it instantly gripped me. The characters were all very appealing to me and Thomasin McKenzie does a fantastic job as Ursula Todd. The rest of the cast was also outstanding. This series was sometimes uplifting and comedic but sometimes downright depressing. Although it isn't flawless, it definitely kept me watching.

A mixed bag. Lovely sets and acting. The first episode dragged, but the second was more engaging. The third was good too, but by the fourth I was bored. Unnecessarily harrowing in places, to the point of mawkishness. But I liked the way Ursula's character changed in her different lives. Difficult to watch the mother without thinking Claire in Fleabag! 😀

I have read the book and enjoyed it very much, even if the stuff in Germany is a bit fantastical. But they changed the ending for the series!! That was a mistake - the series ending is a letdown. I won't give away what it should have been, but it means they can't make an adaptation of the sequel, A God in Ruins, which to my mind is actually a better book.

I'm a big fan of Kate Atkinson novels. So I was keen to see the adaptation of Life After Life. In my opinion, cast and crew have done a great job. It's a very intricate novel and I was concerned it wouldn't work on screen.

I really enjoyed it and Thomasin McKenzie is a wonderful young actress.

A refreshing change to the run of the mill period drama. Ground Hog Day mixed with Downton Abbey! Occasionally painful to watch (episode 2 was particularly harrowing) but also uplifting in parts. Certainly kept me gripped. It does drag in parts and the narration is occasionally distracting but overall excellent, including the acting and production values.

Life After Life: A cycle of life, death and rebirth from 1910 to the 1940s. Ursula sometimes dies at birth, at times a child, a teenager, an adult. Dies from accidents, suicide, murder, a bombing victim. In one instance she changes history by assassinating a tyrant. This is indeed a tale of the Multiverse traversed by one person, But a person who starts to remember past lives, how this affects their actions and their subsequent treatment is teased out in this adventurous and engaging series. Thomasinn MacKenzie is wonderful as the teen/adult Ursula. Directed by John Crowley, Screenplay by Bathsheba Doran, adapted from the novel by Kate Atkinson. Four episodes on BBC2 amd BBC iPlayer. 8/10.