Another really fun episode. An entertaining storyline for Ollie with a punchable villain and entertaining side characters, and a good subplot for Darren too! Not to mention, we get a little more for both Liz and Emma.
When a snobby client stiffs Ollie on a job, everyone tells him what a pushover he is. He decides to “take a stand,” blocking the guy’s driveway with the van until Ollie gets what he’s owed. While Ollie’s locked in his standoff, Darren skips out for a day of fun with his mate Irene, an 82-year-old woman that he’s liberated from a nursing home; things don’t quite go as planned.
This is a good plot for Ollie, because even three episodes in, I can feel how in-character this is for him. He is kind of a pushover, as we’ve already seen from him numerous times. Both Tony and Darren point out that Tony would’ve never allowed himself to be ripped off like this, which only fuels Ollie’s insecurities about it. As the other characters keep needling at him, Ollie makes a dramatic move that’s not exactly well thought-out and then basically gets stuck in it, especially when his “protest” against the snooty client starts drawing a crowd of neighbors.
I love that last point. Due to his attitude and entitlement, the client, Jeremy, has made zero friends in the neighborhood, so folks begin to rally to Ollie’s side. They’re headed up by Gordon, an older man who is just living for all of this. Over the course of the episode, he repeatedly quotes Shakespeare, especially Henry V and Julius Caesar. We also get a crowd with picket signs and an impromptu cookout in front of Jeremy’s house. There’s a fun bit where Gordon brings Ollie a cuppa—realizing he guessed wrong on how Ollie takes it, he goes back to a gaggle of neighbors with teas of their own, swapping until he gets one without sugar. Hee!
We get to see Liz outside the hardware store for a significant stretch, learning about some of her ambitions besides helping out at the family shop. It’s a mixed bag for her, and her family (read: Darren) certainly doesn’t make it easy, but I like learning that she has her own stuff going on outside of Ollie and Darren’s sphere. As for Emma, it’s already been shown in previous episodes, but it’s hammered home here that she feeds into Ollie’s pushover tendencies and benefits from them. She’s good at playing it off sweetly—“You don’t mind, do you?” and, “Just one more thing,”—and we also see how she’s very good at giving a firm hand when she wants to. When it comes to “showing who’s boss,” Tony and Emma are probably tied for first place, followed by Darren (because he simply ignores many of the orders he’s given and does his own thing anyway,) then Liz, then Ollie at the rear.
Okay, let’s talk Darren. As he tells Ollie, he met Irene at “the old people’s home” when he used to do some work there with Tony. Though they don’t get many jobs there anymore, he explains, “I still hang out.” First, Darren brings Irene along in the van with him and Ollie, over Ollie’s protests—further making Darren’s point that Ollie’s a pushover. He and Irene tag-team making fun of Ollie, and once the standoff starts to drag on, they ditch Ollie and run off to make mischief together. They’re thick as thieves, going around town causing trouble. At one point, Darren says, “I’ll tell you what, Irene, if I’ve got to grow old, then I’m gonna do it like you: disgracefully.” And yes, he definitely means it as a compliment.
Eventually, the hijinks give way to something less lighthearted, and to my surprise, we get some genuine earnestness from Darren. I was not expecting this from the horny slacker sidekick, especially not in the third episode. But Joel Fry plays this really well, shifting deftly from Darren’s deadpan remarks and comedic running to his sweet concern and quiet moments of vulnerability. And he makes it all fit. I can buy that this is the same character who caused “the bathroom incident” at Jeremy’s house and doesn’t know how to make a sandwich. It doesn’t feel forced, and even within the sweeter or more dramatic scenes, we still get some silly moments. Really nicely done!
Also, I love Darren’s reaction to the very start of Ollie’s “stand.” When they first pull up to Jeremy’s house, Darren and Irene both assume Ollie’s going to confront him and demand his full payment. But when Ollie just stays sitting in the van, Darren asks, “Why aren’t you moving? He’s not a T-rex. You know he can see you, right?” Oh my god, I love it!
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