Rating: C
Dir: T.J. Scott
Star: Bobbie Phillips, Bolo Yeung, Jalal Merhi, Billy Blanks
[22] Okay, we did Xena for X last time we did an A-Z, but choices for X are limited, so let’s talk about TC 2000 instead – not a complete cop-out, for reasons that will eventually be apparent. Director T.J. Scott must be a Verhoeven fan: this mixes Robocop and Total Recall in a post-apocalyptic industrial estate where the rich live underground. Cute, blonde, future-cop (Bobbie Phillips) is blown away to provide fodder for an experiment in cyborg enforcers, returning as the titular TC 2000, a nifty black-leather clad vixen, much to the concern of former partner (and now tae-bo guru) Billy Blanks.
There’s also something about the environment being deliberately screwed up, but best ignore a dodgy plot (why are there next to no guns?) and severely limited acting in favour of the extremely copious martial arts sequences involving Blanks, Phillips, Bolo Yeung and Matthias Hues. Certainly never lethargic, there’s the odd bit of visual flair to liven things up, and we’d like to see more of Phillips. In both senses. [She did turn up in the recent Wes Craven-produced remake of Carnival of Souls] As for the X:WP link, Scott went on to become a production consultant on the show, and directed a slate of eps, including perhaps the best ever, ‘Callisto’ – which also features a blonde, black-leather clad vixen… Coincidence? I think not.