TV REVIEW: Ripper Street - The Weight of the World

We, and by that I mean myself and the four others of you still watching it, have now arrived at Episode 5 of the BBC’s Ripper Street. And, having stuck with it from the beginning and genuinely enjoyed a good deal of the series, this week was a bit of a non-event, really.

It wasn’t so much that it came across as a filler episode, but more that I hadn’t the foggiest what was going on for the majority of it, and had run out of energy to try. So if, like me, you spent your Sunday evening shouting ‘but who is he? Since when was he talking to her? What’s he doing over there and WHY IS THERE A HORSE?’ here is a little summary of what actually did happen in 'The Weight of One Man's Heart'.

When a gang of robbers steal some valuable jewels, returning all but one blue sapphire, Inspector Reid is puzzled, convinced that something is not right. Meanwhile, Sergeant Drake has, somewhat inexplicably, fallen in love with Rose the prostitute. She in turn simply wants to be an actress, and would rather like someone to find the cash to help her to do that, thank you very much. Naturally, given his condition, Drake wishes to help, but is saddened, however by the knowledge that he is not ‘a man of means’. The sudden re-appearance, then, of one of his Colonels in the army, complete with revenge plot to steal rather a lot of money, naturally causes him to question his true loyalties, put his head into a bucket of cold water and generally have something of a personal crisis.

All good thoughts, or at least near enough. Matthew Macfadyen takes something of a back seat in this episode, looking particularly brooding and intense at the station whilst his right-hand man wanders around the East End questioning his life choices. Ordinarily, this would be a mistake, given that his character is the strongest in the show by some margin. Jerome Flynn, however, gives the pest performance of the series so far, with his conflicted Bennet Drake just about saving what feels like an over-rushed and under-thought plotline. Iain Glen is suitably tortured as the ex-army villain, whilst Adam Rothenberg is delightfully cocksure and quick witted as ever as Captain Jackson, even appearing relatively sweet at choice moments. No sign of Mrs Reid, and very little of Long Susan, which gave Charlene McKenna’s Rose centre stage in the somewhat limited female character stakes.

The production values, score, and performances, then, remained as strong as ever. What let this episode down was its plot. It wasn’t believable, and felt thrown together and badly thought out. Without the occurrence of a murder, Reid and Co had little to do, leaving the balance of the show hanging by a thread not strong enough to carry it.

And I’m still not entirely sure what the horse was all about. 

-Jen

You can read more of Jen's writing here: https://memyselfandtheothers.wordpress.com/

Or you can follow her on twitter here: https://twitter.com/jenniferklarge

TV REVIEW: Ripper Street - I Need Light

If I were to ask you to imagine a BBC period drama, what would you think of? I couldn’t say for sure, but I would imagine you’ve come up with soft, fuzzy image involving petticoats, walking canes and garden parties on the lawn. Not, I should imagine brutal murders, violent early pornography and post-mortem gore. That, however is we get from ‘I Need Light’, the first episode of the BBC’s new drama du jour, Ripper Street.

The first episode, shown last Sunday, for a reason known only to the BBC as part of their festive drama season, introduces us to the smart and serious Inspector Edmund Reid, played by the incomparable Matthew Macfadyen, along with his trusted companion, Captain Jackson (Adam Rothenberg), a rowdy, dashing American surgeon and long-time colleague Sergeant Bennet Drake (Jerome Flynn). Together they attempt to keep local panic on the down low, by proving that the grisly murder of a local violin player was not committed by the infamous and recently missing in action, Jack the Ripper.  

Set just six months after ‘Jack’s’ original murders, the world of Ripper Street provides the perfect environment for copycat killing plotlines, as well as showing the general sense of chaos and fear at the time. Faced with disillusionment and past failures, the police have a lot of catching up to do in order to restore public trust. Sadly, the historical references are a little thin on the ground. The From Hell letter gets a casual mention, victim Mary Jane Kelley gets a name check, and Ripper investigator in chief Detective Abberline (Clive Russell) has a small role.

Realistically, though, all that has all been done before, and this series has plenty more to offer in its own right. In ‘I Need Light’, Reid’s investigation into the murder of the young Maude Thwaites takes him and colleague Detective Drake (Jerome Flynn) into a dark, violent world of prostitution, smut and pornography, with an exploration of the beginnings of photography particularly well expressed.

Be warned, some parts make extremely difficult viewing, although Macfadyen’s earnest, honest Inspector lends a comfortingly secure moral compass to the story. He’s the optimism of the story, the belief that better times lie ahead and it is his duty to make them happen. Flynn and Rothenberg play off each other brilliantly throughout, using their characters differences to full effect as part of Reid’s mismatched Victorian Scooby gang. MyAnna Buring is suitably fiery as brothel keeper Long Susan, and Charlene McKenna is compelling as Rose Erskine, one of her ‘girls’.

The set and general atmosphere are great too, really capturing the darker realities of Victorian London. A timely visit to Finchley part-way through the episode clearly underlines for us the contemporary East versus West divide, with one side force to live ‘like rats’, as Reid remarks. There are plot twists galore, too, with writer Richard Warlow seemingly on a one man mission to prevent viewers from becoming too comfortable.

All in all, this is far from the Sunday night period drama, or cosy murder mystery we’ve come to expect from the BBC. At times, it’s uneasy viewing but on the whole, good on them for that. We all need a shock over our cocoa once in a while.

Next on, tomorrow night, 9pm.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00wk6pq

- Jen

You can read more of Jen's writing here: https://memyselfandtheothers.wordpress.com/

Or you can follow her on twitter here: https://twitter.com/jenniferklarge