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<blockquote data-quote="Mel O&amp;#039;Drama" data-source="post: 197253" data-attributes="member: 23">Just for posterity, I&#039;ll throw in that I&#039;ve already watched eleven out of the thirteen episodes that form this spin-off from the spin-off:<img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/510NgGGMEHL.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />Despite his appearances on The Fenn Street Gang, Bowler is very much its own animal. It plays out in isolation with no guest appearances from the earlier series, indeed not even a mention of a single Fenn Street character. Nor, come to think of it, has Fenn Street copped a mention as a locale. The first half of the series felt like a chore, but as frequently happens I&#039;ve grown to appreciate the rhythms, style and language of the series. It has a very different tone to Fenn Street or Please Sir!, and fewer endearing characters. Gretchen Franklin is always good value, and she&#039;s recurring here as Bowler&#039;s Mum. For an Eighties soap viewer, the scene in which she crossed paths with Johnny Briggs was slightly surreal. I&#039;ve not watched a great deal of Only Fools And Horses, but Bowler himself - with his airs, his frequent French malapropisms and and gauche attempts to be seen as upper class - strikes me very much as a proto-Boycie.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Mel O'Drama, post: 197253, member: 23"] Just for posterity, I'll throw in that I've already watched eleven out of the thirteen episodes that form this spin-off from the spin-off: [img]https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/510NgGGMEHL.jpg[/img] Despite his appearances on [I]The Fenn Street Gang, [B]Bowler[/B] [/I]is very much its own animal. It plays out in isolation with no guest appearances from the earlier series, indeed not even a mention of a single[I] Fenn Street[/I] character. Nor, come to think of it, has Fenn Street copped a mention as a locale. The first half of the series felt like a chore, but as frequently happens I've grown to appreciate the rhythms, style and language of the series. It has a very different tone to [I]Fenn Street[/I] or [I]Please Sir![/I], and fewer endearing characters. Gretchen Franklin is always good value, and she's recurring here as Bowler's Mum. For an Eighties soap viewer, the scene in which she crossed paths with Johnny Briggs was slightly surreal. I've not watched a great deal of [I]Only Fools And Horses[/I], but Bowler himself - with his airs, his frequent French malapropisms and and gauche attempts to be seen as upper class - strikes me very much as a proto-Boycie. [/QUOTE]

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