The Hour: Series 2, Episode 5 (2012)

 

One thing I’m really appreciating about The Hour is the way that the Cold War’s presence is felt with such immediacy.  This episode features a quiet little scene where a secretary wonders whether the office cupboard will make an adequate safe room if the bomb is dropped.  To some extent, these characters are a group of slightly repressed British citizens of the late ‘50s – there are certain things for which they’ll simply put on a happy face and pretend that nothing is wrong.  But they’re also heavy with the knowledge that weapons capable of burning them down now exist in the world, and that charges their actions with an extra recklessness.  It cuts through their more reserved tendencies, forces them to take risks – personally and professionally – and spurs them not to leave important things unsaid.

 

Some excellent character stuff in this episode from all the major characters.  I mentioned yesterday that each was deciding how much they could afford to give for the sake of the story; today, we see some of the cost in action, and everyone deals with that differently.

 

I’ve come to realize that part of what I like about Randall is his inconsistencies.  He’s blunt and no-nonsense, but he’s also extremely empathetic, with such warmth.  His compulsive habits give him the impression of being jittery or weak, but he casts a commanding shadow.  He seems stiff and reserved, but he has a wonderful way of reaching out to people.  He takes a sensible approach to running The Hour, but he delights in challenging established conventions.  And he often presents the detached, pragmatic approach, but he’s remarkable sanguine in the face of very little certainty.

 

It doesn’t seem right that such a contradictory portrayal should work.  Surely, we should all be online crying, “Out of character!”  We should be arguing that Randall shifts as the story needs him to.  But Randall doesn’t feel inconsistent like a sloppily-written character; he feels inconsistent like a person.  It’s a thorough, somewhat messy combination, and I’m like it so much.

 

One more episode to go.  And suspense?  Forget about it; these people are killing me.