altariel | Hustle

Why oh why, despite

dberry's sterling promotional campaigns, did I not start watching Hustle any sooner? I did this with Spooks too; I don't learn.

Falling for a show or a character is a two-step process for me. There's a first moment when I think, "Aye aye, this isn't bland shite." Then there's a second moment when something in my head goes 'ping', and I know I'm nurturing a minor addiction.

With DS9, for example, there was that bit in 'The Way of the Warrior' (first episode I saw) when a bunch of Klingons advanced with menace towards Garak, and he said (something like), "Either you're lost or desperately in need of a good tailor." "Aye aye," I thought, "this is funny." My 'ping' moment came when I was watching 'By Inferno's Light', and Garak started arguing with a light fitting. Trust me, it makes sense in context. (There is sometimes a third step, when a major addiction is born - with DS9, that was while watching 'In the Pale Moonlight' when Vreenak held up the datarod and said, "It's a fake!" Argh!

I watched two episodes of Hustle last night. First moment came when a shot was done ripping off Catch Me If You Can; the shot of Matt Damon faking being a pilot, with a girl on each arm. It cut into some super-stylish 1960s opening credits. The second moment came when they did a shot that made the lead(ish) character look exactly like Alex from A Clockwork Orange. Ping!

Hustle is about con-artists. Each episode is about doing a con. Nice simple premise. It has an ensemble cast, who bicker and witticize at each other. It's really stylish. Leaving aside that latter point, it's practically Blake's 7, if B7 was, er, about con artists doing cons. Imagine if it was set in space.