Around the World in 80 Days (2021) s01e06

Outside the way too quick resolve to last episode's cliffhanger and either a continuity gaffe (or a lousy narrative choice), nothing is wanting about this episode. However, given its simplicity, it should be a slam dunk. And it is a slam dunk. It's maybe just not an exciting slam dunk. But, given the setting, the actors, and the character dynamics, our three heroes stuck together on a tropical island while angry at one another and having to work it out… it's going to be successful. It's got to be successful. There are the right amounts of drama, danger, and friendship, and then good acting.

Of course, it's going to work.

However, the episode's got more than just the tropical island castaway plot; it's also got a London plot. And the London plot is unexpected and ambitious from a character perspective.

Okay, the main plot is David Tennant, Ibrahim Koma, and Leonie Benesch stuck on a tropical island. The continuity gaffe involves how far they were from Yokohama when they went off-course. The end of the last episode suggested it was all immediately following the main action, so there were no two days to play with. Unless Tennant moped around the bar for forty-eight hours straight, which is possible, actually.

Given their close proximity—and Tennant beating himself about getting Koma and Benesch stranded in the middle of the Pacific—pretty soon, Koma breaks down and tells Tennant the truth about some things. I don't think even all the things, though some of the confessing happens off-screen, but enough Tennant's outraged. Tennant and Benesch take one part of the beach, Koma takes another. Only Koma knows how to survive, and he's trying to make amends, so he's always present in one way or another. Even if it's just Benesch considering the situation and how hard to try to influence Tennant.

There's excellent acting from all the actors, but no clear best. Tennant gets a great monologue, but his character would be a partial fail overall if it wasn't a great monologue. Koma gets some excellent scenes but not the arc. Benesch primarily supports the two men but does raise some of the more challenging questions. For example, she and Tennant have a great scene talking about privilege, mirroring the one they had a few episodes ago. In that one, Tennant did the talking; in this one, Benesch does it.

The main plot has a good resolution, the right amount of gentle humor, and some burgeoning character drama (but positive drama).

The B plot, with Jason Watkins and Peter Sullivan in England, has character drama but all negative. Even when it seems optimistic—against all odds—it's actually harmful. Because the heroes are castaways long enough to be reported dead. So Watkins thinks daughter Benesch and friend Tennant are dead, while Sullivan thinks he's indirectly responsible for the deaths. I mean, he'd be directly responsible for it, but Sullivan's not going to take on that kind of guilt.

So it's this very British mourning stuff, which then gets referenced in the A-plot when Koma and Tennant have it out over British friendships and French friendships.

Superb acting from Watkins and Sullivan. There's a chance Sullivan will have the second-best character arc in the show. There's the potential for it. And then Watkins is mired in regret. Very, very heavy stuff, even knowing the characters are alive (for now).

Excellent direction again from Brian Kelly and another good script (credited to Peter McKenna). This episode might be "Around"'s most straightforward—or at least its most traditional—but they do an exquisite job with it. Thanks mainly to the actors, sure, but the production's marvelous as well.

Around the World in 80 Days (2021) s01e05

A couple things jumped out from the opening titles for this episode. First, there’s a new director—Brian Kelly—but more interestingly, there’s a “story by” credit. “Around the World in 80 Days” is a novel adaptation. Debbie O’Malley gets the story credit, Jessica Ruston gets the writing credit. Jules Verne gets his credit, too (but not his residuals). Once more, not having read the source novel, I’m ignorant.

There are several plot points I wouldn’t guess are in the original. Maybe David Tennant’s adventurer being stuck in Hong Kong because bad guy Anthony Flanagan has impersonated a cop and told the bank not to give him any money because he’s a con man. Maybe Ibrahim Koma knowing someone in Hong Kong. But not Koma’s friend being a Chinese crime boss (played by Thomas Chaanhing), who wants him to steal back an artifact from the British.

Koma’s in a good spot to steal back the artifact because the British governor, Patrick Kennedy, throws Tennant a party for being an adventurous Englishman. Well, actually, Kennedy’s throwing the party because his wife, Victoria Smurfit, and all her friends think Tennant’s a dashing romantic hero. Thanks to Leonie Benesch writing a feature article about Tennant’s lost love, which Tennant told her in confidence (actually while tripping) and wrote about without permission.

I doubt the romantic hero thing is in the source novel. Though maybe Verne did address toxic masculinity. Also, probably not Benesch’s father, Jason Watkins, supporting his daughter’s attempts to make the newspaper medium more writerly.

Definitely not the thing about the artifact’s potential return to the Chinese being justified. Though the episode doesn’t hold its punches when characterizing the British empire.

It’s a reasonably simple episode, albeit one with a lot of drama. Without cash, Tennant has to rely on Koma to find them lodgings in Hong Kong, the least eventful plot point in the episode. The need for money leads to all the problems, whether it’s Tennant palling around with Kennedy and Smurfit or Koma trying to get a loan from Chaanhing. Tennant’s character drama starts later in the episode—and ends up being shockingly intense—while Koma’s got a lot going on from the start since he knows what’s Flanagan’s doing but can’t tell without revealing too much truth about himself.

Benesch’s attempts to keep Tennant from reading her article are the closest thing the episode has comic relief, though it’s definitely got its dramatic moments as well. Director Kelly balances things well, and Benesch does an outstanding job this episode.

The episode ends with a big cliffhanger and not just Tennant starting to learn more about Koma; “Around the World: Season One” seems to be heading into its third act.

Outlander (2014) s01e06 – The Garrison Commander

How are you supposed to take “Outlander” seriously? There are three severe eye-roll moments this episode, two of them so close you don’t have time to refocus. The third is right after a thoughtful half-eye-roll when someone will decide to hinge a consequential decision on utter nonsense, and the other person in the scene won’t acknowledge it.

I’ll just identify the other person—Caitriona Balfe—because she definitely ought to comment on the last eye-roll and a half since she’s the narrator, and it’s dramatically relevant. However, not having her comment on the big cliffhanger, when “Outlander” just leans in heavy on being a cheap romance novel, is the show’s biggest failure to date, and “Outlander” ’s basically just a string of failures.

Of course, the show’s other two most significant fails also happen in this episode, and it’s just a race to the bottom.

The first big fail is Tobias Menzies as the evil ancestor of Balfe’s loving husband. Menzies chews and chews at the scenery, but he never manages to bite at any. Even as the show sets him up for too-easy-to-fail moments of villainy, Menzies overacts it, and the moments—even when they’re disturbing—flop. He gets outacted by every single person in the episode, including the bit part subordinates and a non-speaking Sam Heughan.

Heughan doesn’t have a good episode, but it’s not his fault. He’s just in flashbacks for most of it, and when he’s got to figure into the unbelievably basic, silly, and obvious finale twist, there’s nothing to be done. No one could do any better with the material.

Now on to the other big fail: Balfe. Her character makes some profoundly stupid decisions this episode, decisions the episode knows are profoundly stupid and can’t present in any other way. Except Balfe narrates the show, remember—does she really not learn from her mistakes or have any self-awareness whatsoever?

It’s another episode directed by Brian Kelly; I could check to see if they ever replace him but why bother. Ira Steven Behr gets the inglorious honor of the script credit.

There’s some okay support from John Heffernan as a dipshit British general and then Tom Brittney as the one good guy amongst the British.

I guess having Menzies flop so resoundingly does make Balfe and Heughan’s performances seem better. But the only actual good acting is Graham McTavish. Bill Patterson’s got a few seconds of screen time and no lines.

It’s a silly show. Historically accurate costumes and whatever aside, it’s a silly, silly television show.

Outlander (2014) s01e05 – Rent

New (credited) writer—Toni Graphia—same boring director, Brian Kelly. There are multiple points in this episode where it’s obvious all “Outlander” needs are actually creative people involved. The episode has a bunch of future flashes to historian and genealogy buff Tobias Menzies mansplaining history to wife Caitriona Balfe, lessons, and experiences she’ll remember a couple minutes late every single time in the past. Balfe’s on a rent-collecting trip with Graham McTavish and company. There’s Sam Heughan, of course, though the show continues to forget they’ve established any chemistry between the pair and then the regular C-listers.

Grant O’Rourke, Duncan Lacroix, and Stephen Walters are the C-listers. If O’Rouke and Lacroix have ever been named, I’ve long forgotten. Walters is memorable because he’s the rapey one, though this episode seemingly rids itself of that “subplot”—subplot, vague threat, what’s the difference—once and for all. Potentially for the betterment of the show. If Balfe’s not in physical danger at all times from her de facto compatriots, it’s a lot more entertaining.

There are a few significant developments this episode. First, Bill Patterson joins the cast as a learned lawyer working as a bookkeeper for McTavish on the expedition. He and Balfe bond over poetry in the first scene. Balfe’s reading of it is so bad it seems like it’s voiceover, but it’s not. She’s reciting to the lake; he overhears her, they talk poetry and asthma; fast friends. We know they’re fast friends because the narration tells us so, with the writing on it… well, not better exactly because it’s still reasonably awful, but at least the tenses agree.

On the road, Balfe discovers things she didn’t know about her hosts (or captors), stuff they don’t want her to know, so they talk in Gaelic around her because she can’t understand it. Then, in a particularly good scene—well, some of it—Balfe gets pissed about it. The scene goes slightly to pot, but it’s the first time “Outlander” ’s had Balfe think through a situation. At least without the narration doing all the work.

There’s also a scene where she bonds with some local women, which plays like a “Horrible Histories” scene before introducing guest star Tom Brittney as a British officer who takes an interest in Balfe’s situation with the Scots.

As usual, there’s good acting from McTavish and Patterson’s excellent in a thin but omnipresent part—he makes a lot of out it—and the change in tone in the second half works. Right up until the profoundly cheap cliffhanger.

“Outlander” isn’t really getting better, but it’s getting less bad in some good ways. Though Kelly’s direction is a snooze.

Outlander (2014) s01e04 – The Gathering

I’m profoundly disappointed this episode, The Gathering, did not involve all the dudes chopping each other’s heads off a la Highlander. I can only imagine the Quickening episode of “Outlander” will someday similarly disappoint.

“Outlander” ’s Gathering is where all the clan guys gather at the castle, pledge fealty to Gary Lewis, get drunk, and try to rape random women. Of course, if they aren’t lucky enough to rape anyone, they’ll take consensual sex, but it’s not the preference. Time traveler Caitriona Balfe is hoping to use the confusion to escape to get back to the time travel rocks so she can go back to the future. But she’ll find even after an indeterminate amount of time spent planning, getting away is more challenging than coming up with 1.21 gigawatts of electrical energy.

First, she’s got to distract guards Grant O’Rourke and Stephen Walters by siccing them on ladies. Though, to be fair, Walters is a whole lot less rapey this episode. He’s a more genial sexual predator. It’s unclear if it’s character development or just some of the episode’s weird character shifts. Matthew B. Roberts gets the writing credit, and in some ways, it’s the best-written episode. The narration’s terrible, the dialogue’s tepid, the continuity’s off, but it’s still a lot less manipulative than usual.

It also feels way too self-contained, with none of the previous episode’s character work actually mattering. For example, Lotte Verbeek is still snooping around Balfe, trying to discover her secrets, but it’s independent of their relationship arc. Ditto Sam Heughan, who’s barely in the episode—because he’s in danger of losing his head, though not for the Prize—when he and Balfe have scenes together, they’ve got less familiarity than Balfe has with any of the other characters. The episode doesn’t dial back their chemistry; it forgets they have any.

Once again, Graham McTavish is easily the best actor in the show, even if he’s not good at acting blackout drunk.

Brian Kelly directs and turns out to be incapable of action or suspense scenes, which is a bummer. Though someone on the crew has seen Evil Dead 1 and 2 thank goodness. But the slowed down and sped-up rugby match is a silly fail. Kind of like using pop music from the forties as background music for Balfe, though at least the music makes sense, bad or not. Trying to make the rugby look cool is nonsensical.

Though at least there’s not a bunch of weird nudity. Still the terrible narration, of course. They really don’t know how to make this show. Just fundamentally, they can’t figure it out.

Outlander (2014) s01e03 – The Way Out

With a new writer credited (Anne Kearney) and a different director (Brian Kelly), is “Outlander” all of a sudden much better?

No, but it’s less rapey. Even if the “Previously On…” reminds us lead Caitriona Balfe is constantly under threat of assault if she’s not with highlander hunk Sam Heughan. Heughan doesn’t live at the castle with her, however, so theoretically, she’s always in danger when he’s not there. So most of the time. Only even the regularly rapey guy (Stephen Walters) isn’t very rapey. He’s a dipshit, but not a dangerous one.

And the show is a little better. A little. At least it’s not as bad as it could be. Even though there are now daydreams, which look just like reality, the show’s got another device to deceive and manipulate the viewer instead of just telling a story. Though there’s a lot less narration this episode. There’s barely any in the first half of the episode, which has its own plot. Balfe hears about a village boy being possessed, and because she’s from 1945 and everyone in 1945 was an atheist, she knows he’s not really possessed. He must be sick. Will her hunky highlander and her knowledge of European herbs somehow save the day? Or will the backward villagers go with God, with very evil, very vicious priest Tim McInnerny?

There’s also some more with Lotte Verbeek as Balfe’s only friend, who stops being a friend in this episode to spy on her and try to discover her secrets. Balfe’s been considering taking someone into her confidence, but she’s convinced she’ll end up burned at the stake. Or at least nailed to a pillory.

We also find out Heughan’s extremely well-educated, which is why he talks with a vocabulary and cadence of a twentieth-century man, while everyone else is obviously Balfe’s inferior. Though Balfe does exhibit some cruel indifference and a pronounced drinking problem, living in a time without potable water can’t help. Everything’s booze.

The soft cliffhanger is exasperatingly apparent and silly. Ample narration doesn’t help things.

“Outlander”’s a strange show. It’s far from incompetent, but it confuses clutter with clever, and Balfe’s a flailing protagonist. It’s not her fault, it’s the concept, but they’re three episodes in, and they’re shakier than they ought to be. Maybe if there were better breakout performances, no one impresses yet. McInnerny’s cameo is fine—there’s also one from John Sessions—but inventive cameo casting when your narrating lead actor can’t hold the show is a flawed formula.

It’s a show with dire prospects.