After the series was left stale by the end of Moore's tenure as the British icon, it would take a strong lead and taking some risks to get the series back on track. Despite only starring in two films, Timothy Dalton brought a more mature, realistic and often darker Bond to the table for the better.While The Living Daylights (1987) has a few Moore's traits left over, it's a worthy stab at something a little different. We still have the odd innuendo, but nothing as ludicrous as what has come before, except maybe a ski chase scene involving a cello case. The plot is at times a little overcomplicated, but at it's best it's a strong, character driven world cruiser with an enjoyable turn from Joroen Krabbe as the central antagonist. Strangely, we see Bond blatantly lie and take complete advantage of a helpless female simply for the mission, something never really done before in the series. That in itself shows a shift in the tone, however small at this stage.
It was in License to Kill (1989) that Dalton and the character really came in to its own. The story is not simply a man on the job, but a quest for revenge. Despite a typically Bond-esque pre-credits opening, the film quickly darkens, hitting Bond with some pretty severe personal blows. It had been since pre-Moore era we had seen Bond humanised and effected by a plot in such a way we were given a real reason to root for him. The film plays out efficiently, the action is slick and Dalton shines in what was probably the best Bond in over a decade. It's only a shame we weren't given a third Dalton film in order to see how the character may have progressed. I believe the best was yet to come.
6/10 a piece.
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