I personally prefer these 20 year old bits of video. It's both nostalgia and because I just really like them anyway. The windows weren't that bad and could've been executed better but they're not in the same league.
The Windows on the World were no more representative of the "current" BBC Two than the "20 year old bits of video" were. If anything they were less representative due to their lack of variety -- only 5 left by the end -- and aren't memorable. They're unimaginative (the zeotrope scene is a generic-Metropolis-inspired rip off of 1990s-style Bravo), inconsistent (in what way is a car mirror a window?) and badly executed and badly adapted (who else muted iPlayer videos to avoid the horrible soundtrack of zeotrope crashing in?)
The BBC2 1991-2001 idents are fun, varied, well executed, memorable, show a range of different ideas and numerous. You could go through a whole day's pres without repeating one if necessary. They are vastly superior in every way. They don't have to be "representative" of the BBC, they just have to tell you one thing - you're watching BBC2. Forget the corporate bullsquit.
I'd rather see this than anything from the Windows era.
Is that because of the nostalgia, or because you genuinely believe that these 20 year old bits of video are more representative of the current BBC2?
Should we also be bringing back the BBC1 globe from the same era?
They look better than the idents BBC2 were using. The previous ones were staid and boring. What did a Sunroof opening say about BBC2? Not a lot. The only people that thought it did were the ones that wrote the pitch to Roly Keating for it.
They look good onscreen and feel fresher than pretty much all of the Window On The World idents.
You're talking nonsense about how the idents do or don't represent BBC2. The last lot which basically just became about three endlessly repeated didn't add much to the channel.
Too many times new Controllers want to do rebrands mainly to announce their arrival. I applaud Kim Shillinglaw for thinking they already had a good idea so what the hell! Bring it back. I bet Joe Public like seeing them again. It's only a few ident fans that think, "REBRAND! WE MUST REBRAND!" because these popular idents have returned.
Last edited by cylon6 on 14 January 2015 7:38pm - 2 times in total
What would be more interesting is how people under a certain age who don't remember them the first time round perceive them. They finally went in 2001, so I reckon people generally under the age of 20 will have no first hand memory of them.
I'd rather see this than anything from the Windows era.
Is that because of the nostalgia, or because you genuinely believe that these 20 year old bits of video are more representative of the current BBC2?
Should we also be bringing back the BBC1 globe from the same era?
They look better than the idents BBC2 were using. The previous ones were staid and boring.
Oh come on, a logo sitting in some water at a funky angle, or a fibre optic in the shape of a 2 being waved around are at least as staid and boring as the windows idents.
It just smacks of desperation that they've brought them back full time, that they've not got any better options, which frankly should be an embarrassment for one of the most respected broadcasters on the planet. It's just another repeat of the "ooh, we need to liven up our trail end boards, let's use dayglo colours!" type of decisions that ruined the windows look.
It was nice to see them during the anniversary period, but they're outstaying their welcome.
Is that because of the nostalgia, or because you genuinely believe that these 20 year old bits of video are more representative of the current BBC2?
To be honest, the 91-97 set represented a very diverse and dynamic channel, and the launch of BBC Three and BBC Four took that away from them. No longer does it provide programmes for a variety of niche demographics, but it's more of a place to shove stuff that wouldn't sit right on BBC One (unless the audience numbers go up).
The Windows package had been wrecked back in 2009 and it only got worse with the introduction of Alt-J's music in 2013.
Before that, though, they were excellent.
You talk about the Windows package being inconsistent but it couldn't be more different. The idents all shared a common theme: looking / travelling through the 2 and seeing a new perspective.
Admittedly, some of these were very weak (Chase, Seascape etc), but others were strong (Cappuccino and Sunroof) and lent themselves well to real-life situations, with of course, the surprise of seeing the 2 amongst it all. This is what Roly Keating was talking about when he said that the idents
"embody all of BBC Two's distinctive humour, creativity, playfulness and surprise"
(which IIRC, nobody understood here).
Not to mention all of the original musical pieces all shared a common three-note motif.
It's a real shame that the BBC didn't carry the look further like they did with the BBC One Circles in 2007 and 2008. They could've become almost, if not as memorable as the original set of 2s. But they didn't, and the whole thing spiralled into chaos.
I'll admit that the BBC have done this reversion rather shoddily - no new endboards and slides mean that there's two different numerals currently in use on the channel. Let's face it though - your average viewer probably won't notice the difference between old and new 2.
And of course, the 90s idents were whined and begged for back in 2007.
Now you've got them back you're complaining the channel doesn't look fresh enough! Unbelievable.
