When anyone mentions Poldark in a room full of people, there's usually someone who starts waxing lyrical about the virtues of the original adaptation of Winston Graham's series of novels. It was a popular and enduring production, one which casts a long shadow over the arrival of a new Poldark for the 21st century. With the original's stellar reputation, it seems a few people had written off Debbie Horsfield's new take on Graham's material before it had even begun. Such attitudes seem somewhat premature as the first episode gets everything off to a solid, if not entirely captivating start.
Ross Poldark arrives back on our screens, now in the form of Assorted Buffery favourite and Being Human star Aidan Turner, newly returned from fighting a losing battle in the American War of Independence. Presumed dead by his family, Ross returns to find his father dead, his inheritance in tatters and his unofficial intended, Elizabeth (Heida Reed), now betrothed to his wet cousin Francis. It's not long after he arrives home that everyone is telling him to leave again, bar his loyal tenants on his father's estate. However, a chance encounter with saucy wench (there really is no other term for this kind of thing), Demelza (Eleanor Tomlinson), and an ensuing familial brawl suggests to Ross that there is more for him in Cornwall than everyone would have him believe.
As one would expect from a series set in Cornwall, everything looks stunning, from the landscapes everyone wistfully gazes across to the costumes worn by the cast. Cornwall had also been showcased beautifully in last year's BBC adaptation of Jamaica Inn, but there it had been used to its full Gothic potential as storms closed in and the sea roared dangerously. The landscape of Poldark feels much more opportunistic. Although much is made of the exhaustion of the mines on which the Poldark fortune is built and the barrenness of the land they own, the sun glints off the sea and the fields looks luscious. It fits nicely into Ross' renewed determination to make his inheritance a success, not to mention ensuring that the production looks absolutely beautiful.
Of course, the show would be nothing without its Ross Poldark and Turner cuts a fine figure at the heart of the adaptation. It would have been easy to make Ross nothing but brooding looks and masculine posturing, but Turner also adds a quiet, emotional undercurrent to the character that remains restrained but visible. He also fires off a one liner or two with ease, particularly at the expense of his catty near-mother-in-law, which undercuts the tortured longing looks enough to bring some levity to the proceedings.
As for the rest of the ensemble, the cast are suitably strong in their respective roles, though most act more as satellites for Ross' return at this stage, rather than characters in their own right. Phil Davies nearly steals the show as he wraps himself up in a Cornish burr and engages in a good old fashioned fight before the episode's end. Heida Reed simpers very prettily as Elizabeth, but that amount of trembling can't possibly sustain a full character arc. Here's hoping she gets a little more to do as the series develops. Another standout is Jack Farthing as the scheming George Warleggan, clashing his bought and paid for elegance with the rugged Poldarks wonderfully, carrying on the well-worn tradition of the nicely speaking baddie with aplomb.
Horsfield's adaptation skilfully combines exposition and context for the ongoing storyline, but it is here that it feels like there is a spark lacking. With the sheer amount that this first episode needed to set up, it ensures that the story feels more like a primer for eventual events rather than anything particularly significant in its own right. Tensions of all kinds are set up with thwarted romances, financial burdens and socal climbing familial disputes all getting a look in, but it feels like place-setting rather than any particular advancement. If that was the intention, then the series now has a solid foundation from which to spring, hopefully ensuring that it all gets a little more like the comical brawl to end this episode's proceedings than the many exposition-heavy scenes of familial struggle.
If you've been following the blog for a while now, you all know I'm a sucker for a period drama so I'm immensely looking forward to seeing how Poldark unfolds. With everything set up now as Ross retakes his position in the county, it looks like it might be duelling pistols at dawn in next week's instalment. How exciting!
- Becky
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Being Human returns for its fifth series, with a new vampire-ghost-werewolf trio and a new Big Bad but still with the same wicked sense of humour. At the end of last series, Annie (Lenora Crichlow) destroyed the vampiric Old Ones leaving behind newly ghost-ed Alex (Kate Bracken) to look after werewolf Tom (Michael Socha) and vampire Hal (Damien Molony). The trouble is, Hal has been on the blood again and must go cold turkey in order to prevent further destruction. Upon his release, the boys head to a hotel to find a job. At this hotel, there resides a rather nasty pensioner, Captain Hatch (Phil Davies) who is hiding a rather dark secret.
Right from the flashback opening scene, in which Hal tumbles with werewolf Lady Catherine, this new series of BBC Three's supernatural success seems determined to make the mythology bigger and badder than before. Whereas the origins of Being Human was very much about the three supernaturals trying to make their way in the world as quietly as possible, the new cast is given a much richer world to inhabit, one in which the Devil takes form as the Big Bad. It's a bold move and one that may alienate those of us who have been with Being Human from its humble beginnings. I am one such viewer but the fact that this is happening to a new cast makes it a little more palatable. Had it been Annie, Mitchell and George facing down the Devil, I would have been more than a bit peeved.
The new trinity, as they are so called, have a different dynamic to the original trio, particularly through the way in which the traits of the characters have shifted. Whereas Mitchell was feral and weakened by addiction, Hal is controlled, calculating and crippled by anxiety disorders. Alex is the complete opposite of Annie, feisty and confrontational where Annie was nurturing and maternal. Tom's good-natured manners make him perhaps the closest figure to his predecessor as George was quite similar, though George was never capable of quite so much violence. The three actors share an easy chemistry too; Hal and Tom were already a pre-packed comic double act but with the weariness of Alex in the mix, we're set for some great moments.
There were a fair few of these in the first episode, mostly thanks to Damien Molony's Hal who doesn't view going cold turkey as torture, but rather being forced to sit in a room that is very untidy. Molony was the highlight of the previous series, bringing a dangerous edge to his performance as the OCD-suffering vampire. He's well-matched though, particularly by Bracken; the scene in which Alex finally breaks down and yells at Hal for being complicit in her death marks one of the true strengths that the series has always managed. The shift between comedy and drama can sometimes be something that jars in an episode, an awkward shift in tone. Toby Whithouse, however, always manages to find the ideal moments to slide from one to the other, aided with assured performances from his cast.
One of the strongest elements of the series has always been in its Big Bads. While Jason Watkins' Herrick or Andrew Gower's Cutler cast a long shadows over any who follow them, having Phil Davies appear as the devil himself will surely dispel any lingering memories. He's an actor who specialises in nasty, slightly disturbing characters and he's already made quite the stamp on the first episode. There is also the mysterious Rook, last seen mopping up and taking Alex's body away and the accidentally-created vampire Crumb, a victim given the power to become the bully. It will be interesting to see how the hierarchy forms with the latter two characters, but you can guarantee they'll make worthy adversaries for our supernatural trinity.
It's an excellent start to the series, reminding us all of the reason why we loved the it in the first place, albeit with a larger canvas than there was before. If it continues in this vein, then we're in for a cracking series. Though this is Being Human, so it's natural to expect a couple of dodgy filler episodes. Next week's looks like it has a Tom/Hal food fight, which if their cafe conversations are anything to go by from last series, is reason enough to tune in.
- Becky
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