The longevity of Bond is greatly helped by the series' overarching continuity between films; there isn't any. Whether you've seen everything or are a complete newcomer to world of MI6's coolest agent you can still enjoy a new entry in the franchise. So you can see Quantum Of Solace was already making a faux pas in following on directly from Casino Royale. The importance of Mr White, Bond's hostage in the opening sequence, required Casino Royale to understand, as did much of the plot; the normally suave agent was driven to Bourne like anger following the death of Vesper. It's all a little tiring, particularly when the character's mental state takes precedent over the villain plot. It was something to do with oil and Mathieu Amalric's big eyes, right? The film really fell apart when it started trying to set up the next films. Bond movies traditionally had a little coda giving the name of the next instalment, but this time around a big chunk of the run time was dedicated to the mystery of super-villain consortium QUANTUM. A mystery that was left teasingly open. Connery's films may have had SPECTRE, Blofeld's organisation which has clearly influenced QUANTUM, but it was a secondary concern to the main story at hand. Did it work? Sam Mendes came in to right the franchise with Skyfall and threw away all the Quantum nonsense. Which other desperate attempts to get a sequel really get on your nerves? Let us know down in the comments.
