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Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
14-02-2011, 05:32 AM
Post: #1
Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
Christian radicals get an outing, Adam slides further into PTSD as Wes runs away, and Harry has to save his officers from a Mossad kill squad.

What did you think of this episode?

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14-02-2011, 07:18 AM
Post: #2
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
For me, this is the episode where Ros really joins the team. Perhaps it's just how much I like people dodging/attacking each other in the dark but I really like the reveal of this plot too. A nice follow on to the two parter that precedes it.

I also really like Malcolm in this episode. He's a champ.

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14-02-2011, 02:46 PM
Post: #3
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
I thought this was a brave subject to show, Christians fighting Muslims. But I don't think the Christians were very believable as 'Holy Warriors'. They didn't seem aggressive enough.
Sorry JHyde, but I thought the running around in the dark a bit over the top. Why didn't Ros or Adam take the night vision goggles from the Mossad agents they had attacked? And I think Harry should review the security situation regarding Mossad being able to moved armed agents around in this country quite so easily.

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15-02-2011, 03:19 PM
Post: #4
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
I quite enjoy this episode. I think it's good that they show that most religions have moderate and radical factions. But yeah, I agree with Hellsbells that these particular bad guys seemed to think rather small. I enjoy the character interactions in this one a lot, though. There are also many quotable quotes. Adam's "Tell me that wasn't us" when the Muslim is mown down is pretty funny. I particularly like the interaction between Harry and the Bishop in the church, particularly the incongruity of discussing violence in a place of worship.

Malcolm is awesome, particularly the way he takes charge when Adam is having his breakdown, blatantly lying to him about Wes to get him going again.

This episode is also one of very few where the field officers, or Adam and Ros in this instance, is not shown to save the day all by themselves. We get to see a little more of the machinations behind the scenes, and that it needs intervention at a higher level to save them in the end.

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15-02-2011, 09:50 PM
Post: #5
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
i love malcom in this ep its him and him alone that pulls adam out of his little PTSD moment even though at that point he dosnt know Wes is ok! i love the idea they recognise mosad by the formation and the gun (i know why i just like the idea of it ;-). adam really seems to get involved in the plot but it shows how cold he can be does he really decide that his job is more important than his son?

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16-02-2011, 12:57 AM
Post: #6
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
Yeah I forgot to mention how much I like the opening. Adam essentially voices what we are also thinking at that point.

I also think that RPJ does some of his best work undercover as this character and I love that Shaun Dingwall gets such a great part to play. He's a terrific actor.

Harry also gets one of his very best lines in this episode when talking with the bishop.

I haven't actually re-watched this one so there's probably heaps of stuff I've forgotten. But mostly this episode is entertaining and hangs together very nicely. Everyone gets good moments and the Wes drama undercuts the other storyline really well.

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16-02-2011, 03:00 PM
Post: #7
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
I agree JHyde, Harry has some of his best lines in this episode. One of my all time favorites is his line something to the effect of, "Can anyone give me anything that they didn't find by typing a search into Google?" That lack of a good analyst is showing.

Unlike you though, I had to watch this episode again. I have seen it three times now and I whenever I rewatch it, I think, "Oh, yeah! that one!"

I really like the balance of character development vs. threat of the day in this one. Lennie James as the Bishop is fantastic. He really stands out for me. His soliloquy to Jesus as he morally battles the same question the Spooks battle all the time, sacrificing one for the greater good, could have been very OTT but he kept it in check and honest.

And I liked how all the regular characters get their moment in this episode. Proving that it is possible to spread the love.

Question: Is the implication that Section D is being monitored by the Downing Street lawyer supposed the upshot of the Ruth Evershed incident? It's a bit of a red herring if it is.

Question: Can anyone tell me what Ros' response to Zaf is after he says that he thought football was the religion of the day? Perhaps it is a cultural allusion I am not familiar with so just can't catch.

This is a Julian Simpson pulling double duty as Director and Writer. He also directed 4.9, 4.10 and 5.3, all episodes I really like. He is a very stylized Director. My only gripe would be that while I like the script, for me he overshadowed what was a good, tight and reasonably straight forward script with over done filming. Far starters, there is what I call The Bat-Cam. This may be a bit too American/1970's an allusion, but anyone who is familiar with the old Bat Man series with Adam West will know what I am talking about. If there was supposed to be some subliminal meaning behind the choice to use that kind of off-kilter camera angle, it was lost on me. In addition, with the filming of Adam's PTSD meltdown, I feel a little like I am watching Ken Russell directing Clockwork Orange. I generally love the idea of Adam's PTSD. On both cases the filming techniques were a bit too over zealous and gratuitous.

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16-02-2011, 03:17 PM
Post: #8
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
(16-02-2011 03:00 PM)A Cousin Wrote:  Question: Can anyone tell me what Ros' response to Zaf is after he says that he thought football was the religion of the day? Perhaps it is a cultural allusion I am not familiar with so just can't catch.

She says "Except 'ooh aah Cantona' wasn't Jesus' last proclamation."

It's a referral to a chant sung by Manchester United football fans whenever one of their best players in recent history, Eric Cantona, did something awesome on the pitch.

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17-02-2011, 02:41 PM
Post: #9
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
(16-02-2011 03:00 PM)A Cousin Wrote:  I agree JHyde, Harry has some of his best lines in this episode. One of my all time favorites is his line something to the effect of, "Can anyone give me anything that they didn't find by typing a search into Google?" That lack of a good analyst is showing.

I loved that line, definitely Harry at his best.

(16-02-2011 03:00 PM)A Cousin Wrote:  Question: Is the implication that Section D is being monitored by the Downing Street lawyer supposed the upshot of the Ruth Evershed incident? It's a bit of a red herring if it is.

Got to admit that I didn't quite understand the role of the lawyer monitoring section D. Was he just there to ensure everything section D did was legal? And surely it was a bit late to be related to Ruth's 'death'.

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17-02-2011, 03:35 PM
Post: #10
RE: Episode 5.8 [rewatch]
I understood the lawyer to be there because the evidence provided by MI5 against the radical Muslim cleric released at the beginning, was deemed inadmissible in court. This is what led to the guy being released in the first place. The role of the lawyer was thus to ensure that Section D's other operations are done by the book so that the evidence would be admissible next time.

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