Episode 1512: Skyfall

While I was never one of those people who had an issue with Daniel Craig as the new Bond when he was first announced, I think Skyfall is the film that finally won me over fully. (I'm not old enough to have seen any other Bond than Pierce Brosnan, whom I personally thought was very likeable in the role.) The film itself was solid, like Craig's two other instalments in the franchise have been, but it was the Adele-backed opening credits that were truly amazing, the singer herself being an interesting soundtrack choice for what is fundamentally an action movie. (I personally think credit sequences are an underappreciated art, especially in the realm of television, which tends to favour title cards or recap sequences instead.) Another bold move was killing off Judi Dench as M, but I suppose it was a pragmatic decision as well, since however lovely she is as an actress, Ralph Fiennes is almost certainly going to outlive her and be able to play M in the next couple of Bond films. Ben Whishaw as Q was a nice touch too. Am I the only person who thinks his portrayal was clearly influenced by the character of Auggie from Covert Affairs? Now that Craig's signed on to do two more Bond films, it'll be interesting to see how the new character dynamics get developed.