[spoilers] Sir Harry Pearce - Return of the Jedi (#3)

[Gillymac]

What an amazing post!

My answer to both questions is yes - Harry's moment of anagnorisis came as Ruth lay dying in his arms, the change that came over the man as he looked at her blood on his right hand and realised that she was slipping away from him, and his devastation when she did, was powerfully played. And in those few minutes we saw the mask slip, from commanding officer with full control of his emotions, to raw humanity. We continued this theme with his visit to the house. As painful as he knew this would be, he needed to see what Ruth had seen, to fully understand. In the event, this was unbearable for him, and, once again, his armour was penetrated.

Harry's catharsis (from my point of view anyway) comes in three stages. First, he avenges her (and what better avenging angel than Tom Quinn, with whom they had shared history?). Second, He honours her (and all the other fallen spooks) by visiting the memorial and thirdly, finally and most important of all, he steels himself to return to the grid, partially because that is what she would have wanted in the circumstances, but also because ultimately that is who he is. Again, incredible playing by PF - Letting the phone ring, the look of doubt in his eyes replaced with the glint of the old inner fire and the way he growled his name into the receiver. Just masterly.

Thank you again for the post!