All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s03e06 – For Whom the Bell Tolls

In the way it has come for so many British television shows, movies, radio plays, and so on, war has come to “All Creatures Great and Small,” specifically the beginning of World War II. Or at least the King’s Speech beginning of World War II. The family gathers around the radio and everyone gets their demo reel clip. It’s exceptionally well-done. This episode is director Stewart Svaasand’s first “Creatures,” and it’s setting a high bar.

While everyone’s been worrying about the European conflict since the end of last season—with Nicholas Ralph moping about not getting to sign up for a few episodes, forced deferred because he’s a vet—it becomes real for everyone here. Great scenes for Samuel West and Anna Madeley, who get this quietly devastating arc about an abandoned dog. Someone drops him off at the vet’s, presumably on his way to enlist, and, while West is sympathetic as all hell, he doesn’t want people overloading them with abandoned pets.

Then Ralph and Rachel Shenton have a one-two gut-punch arc with the war coming, but also Shenton’s cattle coming in positive for tuberculosis. Not great, considering Shenton’s dad, Tony Pitts, was the one who vouched for the testing in the first place (and doesn’t have savings to get through a quarantine). Imogen Clawson’s around too, but entirely support for Pitts’s arc. Some excellent moments for Shenton throughout, especially an unexpectedly dramatic paperwork subplot.

Callum Woodhouse has the two fun arcs, obviously with significant caveats. He goes to dinner at girlfriend Sophie Khan Levy’s house and finds her father, Kris’s Dosanjh, not the villainous vet he’s been led to believe. Charming family dinner scene, setting Woodhouse up for his big reaction to the war arc. But first, he’s got to visit Patricia Hodge, who’s getting her house ready for the county to utilize in wartime. Adorable cameo from Tricki Woo (wonderfully essayed, as ever, by Derek), but he’s not the focus.

Adrian Rawlins (Ralph’s hard-nosed TB testing supervisor) and Will Thorp (Madeley’s not-romantic but romantic male friend) have great scenes.

It’s all very British and very good–script credit to Jamie Crichton.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s03e05 – Edward

It’s a great episode; easily the best of season three. The show takes a big bite into a challenging, oft-avoided subject—Anna Madeley’s character’s estranged son (Edward)—she called the cops on him when he robbed her previous employer. I think these are season one details, then in season two or maybe a Christmas special, the son was supposedly going to visit but never showed up.

This episode opens with Madeley taking the train down to meet him—Conor Deane’s voice accompanies her, reading his letter inviting her to hang out at a station. He’s in the navy now, so he’s making a connection. Madeley’s left instructions for the boys—just Callum Woodhouse and Samuel West because Nicholas Ralph and Rachel Shenton are up at her family farm—baked the son’s favorite cookies, and set off.

Once she arrives at the station, she meets a young woman, Lara Steward, working at a volunteer tea stand. Steward’s friendly and considerate, drawing Madeley into a more revealing conversation about herself and her relationship with Deane than we’ve ever gotten before. “Creatures” decided to give Madeley an episode on this subplot, and it’s a rousing success. Madeley’s fantastic.

But it’s not just a Madeley character development episode; there’s also loads for Woodhouse and West. Starting their day, West decides Woodhouse will handle all of Madeley’s duties. Woodhouse isn’t happy about it, but when schoolboy Austin Haynes shows up with a ticket for a day in the vet’s office (presumably a prize at the Christmas party), he changes his mind. Watching West be miserable showing some kid around the practice will be great.

However, it turns out Haynes is knowledgeable about animals and keen to learn more; he really wants to be a vet, and West loves finding this unexpected kindred spirit.

It’s a touching arc, which gets more complicated as Woodhouse goes from amused to indifferent to jealous.

Then out at Shenton’s family farm, she and Ralph check in to see what little sister Imogen Clawson’s been doing since the season premiere. Dropping out of school, it turns out, which upsets Shenton. It’s unclear why because Shenton never gets a scene not supporting Clawson and Clawson barely gets any scenes. Shenton and Ralph share some knowing looks, but he’s in the episode even less; it’s Madeley’s episode, and even the stuff with Woodhouse and West is a relief valve for her plot’s intensity.

Excellent script, credited to Karim Khan (his first credit on the series).

The show (and Madeley) have been building this episode since the first season; well worth the wait.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s03e01 – Second Time Lucky

Last season’s Christmas special ended with World War II getting started (or as close as they could get to the war starting without it starting); this season begins with the recruiters in Darrowby, but the vets are exempt from service. It’s a running subplot throughout the episode, initially very gentle, as Nicholas Ralph discovers you can override your exemption and opt-in. Everyone else starts wondering why he’s so keen.

Because it’s not a “James Herriot goes off to war” episode—one thing about “All Creatures” being based on memoirs is you could just google and spoil the story; I’m going to let myself be surprised, or not. No, it’s a wedding episode. Ralph and Rachel Shenton are heading down the aisle, complete with bachelor’s night at the Drovers, Ralph’s parents coming to town (Gabriel Quigley and Drew Cain have surprisingly little to do), and everyone worrying Shenton’s going to have second thoughts again.

There’s a lot of nice character stuff for Shenton, with the various people in her life asking how she’s feeling about this wedding, including little sister Imogen Clawson, who’s ready for Shenton to move out (even if Shenton isn’t), vets’ housekeeper Anna Madeley, and, of course, dad Tony Pitts, who gets gruffer and more adorable every episode.

But Ralph’s arc is muddled, partially through intentional obscurity (the enlistment subplot), partially because part of the story is Ralph, Samuel West, and Callum Woodhouse getting blackout drunk at the Drovers for the bachelor’s party. Madeley’s got to get them motivated and moving, with a veterinary case making it hard to make the church on time.

The episode feels more like a special than a season premiere, with nothing really being established for what’s next. There’s also this weird moment when Woodhouse comments on Ralph’s Brobdinagian sense of duty, based on something in the veterinary case, but the example was someone class shaming Ralph, not his sense of duty. It’s a disconnect.

The episode’s good; the performances are rock solid; nothing feels off; it just doesn’t feel like we’re really back in Darrowby yet. Even the Tricki Woo (essayed, as ever, by Derek) cameo feels too forced for a regular episode but just right for a summer special.

It also might just be the “missing wedding ring” subplot, running through the entire episode, is the closest the show’s ever gotten to saccharine. “All Creatures” has always been exceptionally well-balanced (save a couple times), and it’s always weird when they go too far.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s02e04 – Many Happy Returns

“All Creatures” bounces back this episode, which isn’t a surprise, but this episode has the same director as last episode (Sasha Ransome). At some point between filming the last one and this one, Ransome figured out how to direct Nicholas Ralph and Rachel Shenton’s chemistry. The last episode took a dive because of the episode’s butterfingers handling of their first kiss, and this episode more than makes up for it. I was really expecting a different director; maybe it’s all the writers’ faults (and successes).

Anyway.

The A plot this episode is Callum Woodhouse out on his own. It’s his birthday, with brother Samuel West giving him the medical bag present (from the first episode this season) and then a day of assignments. Ralph’s going to be accompanying him, but not only to observe; Ralph’s got to go check in on Shenton’s farm—they’ve got a very important horse no one’s ever mentioned until now, so he’s got a full day.

Meanwhile, Anna Madeley is putting together a last-minute dinner party for Woodhouse—everyone assumed he’d want to go to the bar, but instead, he wants to be classy—and West is hanging around the house, trying to think of excuses to go out and check on Woodhouse.

Woodhouse has two veterinary cases, though the first is multiple patients. He’s doing maintenance work on numerous horses at an afore unmentioned estate, where he knows the fetching daughter, Jessica Clark, and wants to invite her to his dinner party. Since Ralph’s now coupled with Shenton, he’s got lots of advice to give—though their subplot is him not having told her about his Glasgow job offer even as he tells Madeley he’s going to talk to her about it immediately.

Steven Hartley plays the stablehand who’d prefer experienced West to take care of the horses and very drolly observes Woodhouse on his first solo assignment. It’s a fun outing for Woodhouse and Ralph, with lots of charm from Woodhouse. And Hartley’s a delight.

The second patient is one of Jon Furlong’s cows. She’s having a difficult labor (presumably knocked up by some bull other than Shenton’s, which was a season one plot thread). Again, it’s a charming outing for Woodhouse, who seems to be having trouble but refuses to give up. The episode never points it out, but Ralph had a similar first day when he started at the practice.

There’s some cute stuff for Shenton’s family—little sister Imogen Clawson is waiting for the horse to give birth to her very own pony, with dad Tony Pitts hanging around for the scene. He seems to be there just so Clawson can amusingly tease him. Ralph invites Shenton to the dinner party instead of telling her about the Glasgow job.

The dinner party will have some society drama and a lot of gentle doting for West and now officially returning girlfriend Dorothy Atkinson. It’s the most Atkinson’s had to do on the show so far; she’s delightful. Clark and Shenton have a history separate from their hosts, which proves tense, but the focus is on brothers West and Woodhouse. West’s finally proud of his little brother, and nothing can go wrong now.

Except, of course, this season’s all about the secrets, and all of them get aired here. Well, most of them. Any outstanding secrets are now qualified.

The episode does a great job working through it all. Debbie O’Malley gets the script credit. Shame she wasn’t around last episode.

The episode also gives Shenton some of her first real acting all season, and she ably handles it. But the stars are Woodhouse and West. They both get a wide range of emotions to essay, and they’re outstanding.

It’s not the most ambitious “All Creatures,” but I think it’s the most successful. Even if it weren’t rebounding from last episode’s pratfalls, this one does exceedingly well.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s02e01 – Where the Heart Is

The season two premiere opens very similarly to the first episode, with Nicholas Ralph back in Glasgow. He’s visiting his parents (for Easter), so four and a half months after the Christmas special, and mom Gabriel Quigley wants him to move back home. There’s a job at the local vet office. The practice has the latest technology, serves household pets (a growing industry), and prospective boss Euan Macnaughton values Ralph’s opinion.

And dad Drew Cain is getting a little old for working on the docks.

So Ralph tentatively agrees to return home permanently for the job, which will be open in approximately six months. Potentially the present action of the season.

When he gets back to Yorkshire, he keeps this job offer a secret from everyone there. This episode’s all about secrets, big and small. The other big one is Callum Woodhouse not passing his veterinary boards and, therefore, not being board-certified. It’s unclear how much this exam result matters—can Woodhouse practice without the results—but brother Samuel West is noticeably uncomfortable when housekeeper Anna Madeley wants to get Woodhouse a gift recognizing the achievement.

So West’s lying to Madeley quite badly, and she suspects something’s going on.

Then Woodhouse—who’s mostly just stocking the dispensary at the practice—has his own secret. Thanks to a busy schedule, he gets to attend guest star June Watson’s parakeet. Except it drops dead, so Woodhouse gets the idea to just replace it with another, as Watson’s blind. It’s the comic subplot in the episode, also involving West and Madeley to fine result.

The other veterinary case involves Philip Hill-Pearson’s sheep and the neighbors’ dog. Unfortunately, the dog’s terrorizing the sheep, leading to some severe consequences. Complicating things is the dog’s owner—it’s Imogen Clawson, little sister to Ralph’s love interest, Rachel Shenton; both Clawson and Shenton are pals to the practice in general, so when Ralph finds out the dog’s in danger of being put down, he and Clawson cook up a scheme to save the pup.

Also, under the surface is whatever’s gone on with Ralph and Shenton since Christmas, when she canceled her wedding (at her wedding), leaving Ralph open to pursue her.

The arc’s got some humor thanks to Woodhouse and Clawson gently teasing Ralph about his crush on Shenton, but it soon gives way to a conflict between city slicker Ralph (who doesn’t think you should kill a dog for barking at sheep) and the country folk. West, Pitts, and even Shenton don’t take kindly to Ralph’s input on the matter.

Amid all the contemporary drama is Madeley wanting to make Ralph feel at home again on his return—he was away visiting a couple of weeks—and seeing how West’s aggressive attitude is affecting Ralph, without knowing Ralph’s contemplating that job offer.

Lots of quiet drama, genial humor, and fine acting. Ralph does particularly well with the personal conflicts, guest star Hill-Pearson’s great, and Clawson and Woodhouse are both excellent.

“All Creatures” is off to a somewhat strange start for the season—not sure there were any secrets in the first season—but it’s a good start.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s01e03 – Andante

This episode very nicely alleviates most of my (limited) concerns about “All Creatures,” even without bringing back Diana Ring for another guest spot.

As with the previous two episodes (so, all the previous episodes), new veterinary assistant Nicholas Ralph again has an arc where he needs to be worried about losing his position. However, it’s the plot here, not just a quick resolution or foil to move things along. The episode’s third act is just Ralph—and new pal Callum Woodhouse (they need to team up to cope with the boss, Samuel West) and housekeeper slash den mother Anna Madeley—freaking out about him losing his job. It’s even worse this time because everyone in town knows about it, so they’re either congratulating Ralph (because his latest potential mistake affected a bet) or mocking him.

It could all go wrong, and every episode going forward could have this same beat, but they finally seem to have it addressed here. West’s got a whole lot more agency this time around; he’s not just the overbearing boss, he’s the sympathetic colleague.

The other outstanding concerns—can Woodhouse be a non-competitive, not twerp effectively, and can Madeley get a real arc–also get answered. Both in the affirmative. Woodhouse gets a very amusing turn about trying to collect payment from the local farmers, and discovering the best way to do it involves getting them drunk before hitting them up. He even makes a new friend: bartender Mollie Winnard, who seems like his imminent love interest.

Meanwhile, Madeley’s arc involves babysitting Imogen Clawson so older sister Rachel Shenton can… do things. Clawson’s nearing her terrible teens and no longer minding Shenton, who’s had to play mom in addition to sister, and Madeley brings a new perspective to the entire situation. It also gives Madeley and West’s relationship some depth because they can bond over parenting, though West’s just older brother parenting Woodhouse. It’s an amusing arc, too; Clawson’s impetuous and overconfident, so Madeley’s got to contend with attitude.

Then West’s got an arc where he’s interviewing to be the vet at the local racetrack. Initially, he’s only able to get his foot in the door because of local rich guy Matthew Lewis (who we met last episode as Ralph’s rival for Shenton’s affections), but then he and stuck-up track owner Nigel Havers have a great bonding scene. It’s West’s best-acted episode of the series so far; it’s also the most significant real arc he’s gotten.

Ralph gets the veterinary procedural cases—a horse with colic and then a cow showing signs of heat exhaustion. Lots of terrific acting from Ralph on both cases, where his expertise is questioned repeatedly. Susan Jameson’s great as the nasty cow owner, who delights in mocking Ralph.

After the taut third act, there’s a nice resolution with West and Madeley. They’re quickly becoming the show’s most tangible, developed, and rewarding relationship. It’s particularly nice since they both have a strong episode apart, then bring it together throughout and at the end.

Hopefully, this episode will be the last time Ralph has an “am I fired” arc for a while. It certainly seems like they’re comfortable being done with it. Fingers crossed.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020) s01e01 – You’ve Got to Dream

“All Creatures Great and Small” is pastoral to the point of pastures. The show—based on a show, based on a movie, based on a series of memoirs—tells the story of young veterinarian Nicholas Ralph. He moves from urban Glasgow to rural Darrowby, Yorkshire, for an assistant job to country vet Samuel West.

Except Ralph thinks he’s just going for an interview. And he doesn’t know West didn’t actually want to interview him or hire him at all. West’s stubborn, mercurial, and big-hearted, trying to manage the expectations of his patients’ owners. The practice is mostly farm animals, though they see house pets.

Anna Madeley plays Ralph’s housekeeper, and since the house is also the practice, she is his de facto office manager. Sending for Ralph was her doing.

After a quick but thorough setup, West takes Ralph out on rounds. At this point, “Creatures” becomes a veterinary procedural and doesn’t look back. The show’s set in 1937, so there’s still a lot of excitement about various technologies, whether automobiles or medical discoveries. There’s quite a bit of driving, actually, because the scenery’s so pretty and Ralph and West both enjoy motoring around it so much, one of them yelling out “toot toot” wouldn’t be inappropriate.

The episode’s got a fairly standard structure. After initially proving himself, Ralph then runs afoul of West through questionable fault of his own. The show’s too genial to dwell on whether or not West’s trying to set Ralph up for failure. Will Ralph be able to prove himself in time or have to go back home to Glasgow, where the show’s already established he’s no veterinary prospects. All he’s got in his future there is working on the docks, like dad Drew Cain had to do (before giving up his dreams, like Ralph will have to abandon his own).

It’s a little different—Ralph’s a trained veterinarian, whereas Cain was a musician. Also, mom Gabriel Quigley being gleeful at Ralph’s imminent failure’s an odd way to start. While it may be based on fact, the episode rushes through it way too quickly. Luckily, Madeley quickly offsets everything; while she’s arguably got the least to do in this episode—fetching farmer’s daughter Rachel Shenton is the one who gives Ralph the necessary insight to breakthrough to West—Madeley makes the whole thing seem reasonable. Only through her capableness can West function at such a high level.

The show is Ralph’s first work as an actor (complete with an “introducing” credit, I think), and he’s got great timing for the fish out of water humor. In addition to being a city boy, he’s never professionally worked with farm animals, which leads to some funny moments.

And also the serious ones. While Ralph’s got the book-learning, he doesn’t have the practical experience with the animals or the professional experience with their owners. Professionalism is a very big deal to West, which the episode contextualizes beautifully. Ralph does a fine job toggling between comedy and drama.

The resolution’s appropriately suspenseful. It balances the inherently sympathetic animals in distress with Ralph’s experiences trying to relieve that distress.

It’s a really good first episode. Toot toot indeed.