The Field of Blood: Series 1, Episode 2 (2011)

 

The conclusion of this story most certainly did not disappoint.  Paddy follows her instincts and scrounges for leads.  She sees the power of journalism first-hand, makes some truly harrowing discoveries, and shows absolutely everyone in the story what she’s made of.  I’ve never heard of Jayd Johnson, who plays her, but the character is tremendous on all fronts.

 

To sweeten the Field of Blood pot, I should also mention that the editor of Paddy’s newspaper is played by David Morrissey, who I first saw as Stephen Collins in the terrific State of Play, and of course he played the titular character on the Who Christmas special “The Next Doctor.”

 

And now, on to the main course:  we see a lot more of Dr. Pete in episode 2.  While he’s not exactly a central character, he’s an important one.  Paddy’s chief lead in her story is the similarity between the present murder case and another that happened years ago, and guess who did a lot of the reporting on it?  Dr. Pete confides that he always believed the convicted man was innocent, and he hopes that Paddy clears Callum’s name, doing what he couldn’t back then. 

 

Dr. Pete is a possible mirror for Paddy’s future – a weary, hard-drinking journalist who’s “misplaced” his faith, he’s let the job consume whatever drive he once had, whatever hopes.  “Cynics are just heartbroken idealists,” he tells her dazedly, numbed to the point that he’s hardly there anymore.  But in Paddy, I think he sees a spark of the journalist he must have been once, and that spark is enough to shake him out of his complacency.

 

As for the Dylan Thomas, I just have to rave about it for a bit.  It’s hardly the most insightful interpretation of the poem – Dr. Pete is practically marinating in alcohol as the time, making it more of a morose, drunken rant than anything else.  What I like about this recitation, though, is that it’s all about what the poem means to him.  He starts in a quiet monotone, almost as an afterthought, but listen to his voice, and you’ll hear in an instant which lines he feels are the vital ones.  A really interesting way of look into the unseen life of this character.

 

Final thoughts:

 

Accent Watch

 

The accent is super-thick here.  I really had to listen to catch his lines; the inebriation didn’t help.

 

Recommend?

 

In General – Absolutely.  There’s a second season of The Field of Blood that came out this year, and I plan on tracking it down once Capaldi Fall is over.

 

PC-wise – Very much so.  Great performance of a very sympathetic character.

 

Warnings

 

Add some sexual content, including a brief sex scene, and an intense scene of violence.