Chocky's Children (1985)

The second series picks up one year after the events of the first (see HERE). Young Matthew Gore is again the main focus but, like the title suggests, he’s not alone. Chocky has other children to whom she's been communicating. There was no John Wyndham source material to draw from this time, but the Wyndham estate did give its permission for the episodes to be made.

The story expands upon something that was mentioned but remained underdeveloped in the first series. It retains the mood and basic structures of before. However, the deep psychology of the previous work is absent, leaving an occasionally melodramatic tale of children from very different backgrounds forging an intimate friendship based on unusual foundations.

The protective father figure is also absent this time, leaving the majority of the adults to be either straightforward bad guys or single-minded, lacking faith or imagination. For a while things are good. The first four episodes are well-paced, the dramatic tension and contrasts show potential, and the young stars once again out-act the adults, but it descends into the realms of the ridiculous in the final episode. Ultimately, it's not as good as the first series but should still be enough to please fans who hold fond memories.

The methods Chocky employs to contact the hosts are glossed over; perhaps the writers feared they wouldn’t get away with that kind of implication a second time?

6 episodes, approx 25 mins each.

2½ brain fevers out of 5