This week, Jason finds himself tangling with the Maenads, followers of Dionysus, questioning his destiny, fighting in slow-motion and meeting a woman called Medusa.
For what initially appears to be a simple plotline, there's a lot going on in this episode, starting with Jason and Hercules working security for a merchant only for Hercules to get drunk on the job and allow the theft of the frankincense that he's supposed to be protecting. Then, an old man comes to seek Jason's help in finding his missing daughter, Demetria, who he wishes to see before he dies. Jason agrees to help, Hercules does to in order to escape the rich merchant and Pythagorus is mostly filler. The three get tangled up with the Maenads who follow the god Dionysus (in a rather tame version of his rites and rituals, as befitting a Saturday night audience) and incorrectly represented satyrs, where they also meet Medusa.
So yes, many many things going on in this episode and not all of them good. The balance between levity and drama across the narrative is misjudged a fair amount of the time and Hercules' bombast is going to become irritating before long. I love Mark Addy, but his performance is particularly one-note at the moment, all shouting and guffawing, which is occasionally humourous, but sticks out like a sore thumb when the tone shifts to weightier stuff. Performances elsewhere are more successful than others; it's great to see Jemima Rooper on screen again and she's the best thing in this as Medusa, currently a lot nicer than the destiny that awaits her. Jack Donnelly, on the other hand, is a charisma vacuum, saddled with some terrible, clunky lines which he can't help but deliver in a stilted fashion. If he's supposed to be from the 21st century, why is he speaking like a character from a Charlton Heston swords-and-sandals epic?
That Jason comes from the 21st century seems to be just a convenient plot device for him to be able to know who characters like Medusa are well in advance. It is serving little purpose anywhere else as he seems more than comfortable loitering about in Ancient Greece. Returning to the lines poor Donnelly has to deliver, if he's supposed to be from the 21st century, why is he speaking like a character from a Charlton Heston swords-and-sandals epic? Dialogue should involve you in this world, but in Atlantis, it just seems to be a way of providing exposition or getting to the next joke. Or reminding you about Jason's destiny, which was referred to at least five times over the course of the episode. Action Jason, or as he will now be called, Slow-Mo Jason, got a run out a couple of times in this episode, but we cannot rely on action scenes alone to carry this character.
And then there's the Greek mythology aspect itself. I'm trying not to get too caught up in the fact that this isn't an accurate representation of these legends, more a melting pot, which is largely fine. I'm interested in seeing how the Medusa thread develops because it has to be different from the original (Medusa is raped by Poseidon in Athena's temple; the goddess then transforms her as punishment. Yep, the Greeks victim-blamed a lot). However, the satyrs were just plain wrong. So wrong. Like ridiculously wrong. For example, on the right is a satyr. Half man, half goat, no monkey. I don't understand the decision to transform them into something else. Why not just invent another monster?
Atlantis may have started well, but it's going to have to pull its sandals up if it is going to keep people watching; the episode is muddled, badly written and ever-so-slightly dull. Yes, Merlin took a while to bed in properly, but it still had a spark at the heart of it that kept people interested. Rooper was a highlight but there is only so much good she can do when even Hercules can't do the heavy lifting. I'm not expecting Emmy-award winning stuff here, but a good story would be a start.
- Becky
You can read Becky's review of the first episode here.
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