=C__O__D__E 5 Starring the likes of Jack Davenport, Susannah Harker, Philip Quast and others, this superbly creepy BritishTVSF offering of the late-nineties proves that, despite what evidence the likes of TheLastTrain may have presented, the British TV medium didn't entirely lose all its SF-related marbles in 1989. Its aim is to 'play vampires straight', to present a down-to-earth, real world techno-thriller which just so happens to feature ageless resilient haemovoric life forms who don't show up in mirrors as its villains. Villains? Sorry, maybe not... but you'll have to watch to learn more. While some of its 'look, we're moody and grown-up' attitude can seem slightly O__T__T nowadays in our post-post-post (ad infinitum) modern era, Ultraviolet does none the less afford an interesting and well-thought-through story, believable and mature characters, and a consistent and chilling take on vamp... Code 5. (V. Get it?) They don't show up in mirrors. "The only machine that can see 'em is us." They can't be recorded on film or video. They can't even use a telephone. Oh, and vampire equals evil undead demon? Or equals better chance at long life? Vampire hunters- forces of good, or fanatical death squad. Maybe things aren't as black and white as one might think... UltraViolet was not afraid to confront the ethical and moral issues of its subject matter head on, and dealt with such emotive issues as abortion and I__V__F, medical experimentation, terminal and mental illness, and even paedophilia, as well as less emotionally involving but still 'real-world' matters as the stock market and futures trading. Whereas the vampires of BtVS are 'demons'- neatly allowing one to kill them without guilt, the 'leeches' seen here are still all too human, and whilst the vampire hunters might tell us that they have lost all human feeling, and that any appearance of such is a sham, the truth is left extremely enigmatic. It also has a *very* nice line in incidental music. There was only one, six episode series of UltraViolet, the episodes in question being: || |1. |Habeas Corpus |2. |In Nomine Patris |3. |Sub Judice |4. |Mea Culpa |5. |Terra Incognita |6. |Persona Non Grata Google yields this reasonably good episode guide: CategoryTVSF CategoryBritishTVSF