This entire series could have made a good 90 minute movie. Stretching the rather thin story out to six episodes has left us with far too much superfluous padding and many of the scenes in episodes 4-6 could be shortened or cut altogether. The other big problem - and in this case it is a huge problem - is that the double act of Michael Sheen and David Tennant is so brilliant that whenever they're not on screen the movie falls apart. The two characters of Aziraphale and Crowley are simply in a different league to the rest of the duffers in the cast - with the possible exception of Miranda Richardson who hams it up nicely as Madame Tracy. The scenes with just the children are like something from a cheap children's TV show and need drastic editing, while Jack Whitehall is a complete dud, along with Adria Arjona, who probably got the part because of her resemblance to a certain member of the British Royal family. The script appears to have stolen liberally from any number of sources, notably Monty Python. There are bits lifted directly from Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, The Leaping Nuns of the Order of St. Beryl become the Chattering Order of St. Beryl, for instance. Bits of The Omen and The Exorcist are brazenly cut and pasted into the script, and even Mary Poppins gets tugged into the caper (check out the umbrella handle). These stolen moments are all very amusing for film buffs to sit and spot but they also reveal the paucity of original ideas emanating from Neil Gaiman's shallow imagination. By the time Armageddon finally arrives - or not - the movie is long past it's sell-by date and just hangs around like a fart in an elevator. Without Sheen and Tennant Good Omens wouldn't even get a DVD only release. Watch the first three episodes for Sheen and Tennant then ignore the rest.
Review of Good Omens
