I know
it’s a comedy, but this episode has the feel of the climax in a classical
tragedy. The fight between Mercutio and
Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet,
Polonius’s death in Hamlet… As the
characters are flying high and feeling invincible, that first catastrophe
occurs, and it sets off the chain reaction that will topple all their hopes.
My, but
that’s a bit dramatic, isn’t it? Gerd,
Thomas, Manfred, and the gang couldn’t be more excited about the diaries. Everything’s been absolute secrecy up to this
now – the forger who’s selling the diaries has fed them the line that his
brother is smuggling them across the East German border, so discretion is
paramount – but whisperings and rumors start to circulate when a page is
brought in to analyze its authenticity.
It’s not the analysis that’s worrisome; in fact, the expert brought in
is 100% certain that the diaries were from the hand of Hitler. Rather, it’s the gossip that begins swirling
through academic and publishing circles.
Someone has let the diaries’ existence slip, and the scavengers are
eager for a piece of the action.
The
doubters have started to circle as well.
Gerd and Thomas’s chief rival, historical expert David Irving, has
caught wind of the diaries’ existence.
He’s determined to get a look at them, and his eyes are far less clouded
than Gerd’s. With David, Roger Lloyd-Pack
joins the cast (John Lumic from the Cybermen two-parter in the second series of
Who.)
Very
little for Thomas to do in this episode.
All I can really say is that he’s completely changed his tune from the
start of the miniseries. Gone is the
cautious Doubting Thomas (see what I did there?) that thinks the myths were too
juicy to be true. He’s fallen for it
hook, line, and sinker, and his and Gerd’s hubris is another thing reminiscent
of a tragedy.
As a
side note, I like the way that the entries in the forged diaries are so utterly
mundane. Gerd is practically wetting
himself with excitement over a matter-of-fact catalog of Hitler’s meals, health
problems, and day-to-day comings and goings.
Warnings
A
disturbing scene of a group of Americans discussing Hitler’s supposed good
qualities. In a way, it reminds of a
scene in The Thick of It where Glenn
and Ollie compare Malcolm to Chairman Mao and applaud “the evil” for their
amazing work ethic, but given the subject matter, it’s more troubling than
anything.
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