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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 385852" data-attributes="member: 23">Despite the Seventies revival of Till Death Us Do Part being viewed as somewhat inferior to the Sixties run, the newer episodes continue to appeal to me even more strongly.It could be the case that it's taken me this long to "get" the character of Alf. Perhaps the colour, the improved image quality and the consistency of episodes (with none from this era being missing) are all swaying me. All could be factored in, but I continue to feel that the more "conventional" sitcom feel here, with reduced emphasis on stories of the day makes it feel more accessible to me. It's still politically charged, but there's less topical stuff to make it difficult to follow.Alternating this series with Brookside is proving interesting, because I can really see parallels between the energy of the cast here and those that would come in Brookie's Grant household. Here, as there, it feels completely believable and "lived in" without being too comfortable or cosy. There's constant tension and friction in the household, with resentments that bubble along and get brought into the light regularly, while still convincing me that familial loyalty and love are the glues which bind this often dysfunctional family together.The central couple - Alf and Else - seem to genuinely dislike each other at times. They bitch at each other and seem to revel in the one-upmanship and genuinely enjoy seeing the other one humbled or even humiliated in some way. But they stay together because it's what they know and too late to opt-out. For this generation it really is Till Death Us Do Part. Alf rants and moans. Else gets the other members of the household on board and colludes with them to belittle and shame him. It sounds larger than life, but I've seen this dynamic firsthand with people I've known and so I don't question it.I fully believe that Alf loves Rita while barely tolerating her husband (possibly even liking him but being unable to show it). Likewise, I can see that Rita loves her Dad even as she finds him foolish and disagreeable. She'll join in the rowing and push back at him again and again. Then, every once in a while she'll lean in and kiss him on the lips and giggle like a gleeful naughty schoolgirl. It's very endearing.Una Stubbs has been a standout in these Seventies episodes. Rita has blossomed and so has Una who is regularly making me laugh out loud. At this point, Rita now gets regular "You make me sick, you do" rants mid-episode, and a few of theses have blown me away. In one of these she went into a diatribe that felt several minutes long, just as Alf started to make a point. When she finished, there were cuts to each of the other three rendered speechless and open-mouthed.Joan Sims is also terrific as Gran (and in the episode where they thought she was dying, I could swear she genuinely had no teeth in, whereas usually it looks like she's doing that theatrical thing of folding her lips into her mouth to cover her teeth). It currently seems Gran isn't a member of the family, but a family friend whom everyone calls Gran, but it's been a confusing situation.Spike Milligan in brownface continues to be the series' major misstep for me. He just made his second appearance (though his first wasn't acknowledged and I'm not sure if he's meant to be a different character). The sight of a white man playing an Indian character is far more uncomfortable for me than Alf's language. Yes - his character helps expose Alf's ignorance for what it is, but it would carry more weight - and support the writer's point - if he were played by an ethnic minority actor. I really don't understand why this is the only non-white character to be played by a white performer, and I hope this is the last we've seen of this. I'm now up to the end of Series Five. I know Else is about to depart or have a drastically reduced role, and I'm curious to see how this significant change affects the tone of the series.</blockquote>

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