"Better a fallen rocket than never a burst of light."
~ Tom Stoppard, The Invention of Love

Friday, January 10, 2014

Titmuss Regained: Episode 3 – “And the Next Day…” (1991)

 
This is the way the miniseries ends:  not with a bang but a whimper.  In my opinion, anyway – I can’t argue that the ground for the ending wasn’t well-laid, but I just didn’t find it very satisfying.  It focuses less on the issue of countryside development, and Titmuss’s conundrum thereof, and more on personal issues between Titmuss and Jenny.  Even though, like I said, their problems have been apparent from episode 1, they seem to derail the narrative a little here.
 
But what of Ken Cracken, junior minister and senior tool?  The young snake, it would appear, has been reading Machiavelli between episodes.  While in the first two installments of the series, he basically just takes advantage of the situations happening around him and claims them as his own victories, he actually makes things happen here.  He gets a read on people, figures out how to play them. 
 
I like that, seeing Cracken taking a more active role in his own schemes.  I don’t think I realized how little Cracken actually does in episodes 1 and 2 until I saw him at work here.  It’s more fun to see him hatching schemes instead of just plotting them.  It comes down to whether or not Titmuss is able to figure out Cracken’s game and thwart it in time.  Naturally, I’ll leave you in suspense on that point.
 
Accent Watch
 
This might be the best RP I’ve heard from PC so far.  Impressive, considering how early it came in his far and how much thicker his natural accent seemed to be back then.
 
Recommend?
 
In General – Eh, not necessarily.  It’s fine for what it is, but I just didn’t find it all that exciting.
 
PC-wise – Possibly.  Cracken is a hoot, and I’m sure PC got a kick out of playing that little weasel.
 
Warnings
 
One sex scene – seen far away and in low light, but still unmistakable.

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