#switched entirely here; Woodvine is reticent to demonise Cranham without solid proof of his involvement‚ expresses some sympathy | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

mariocki · 6 months ago

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New Scotland Yard: The Come Back (1.2, LWT, 1972)

"This wasn't a sudden impulse. It was deliberate and calculated. He had to break in to get at the old man, and then - well, you saw what he did to him. I don't know if he's a psycho or not, but I do know he's a sadist and I know what treatment I'd hand out."

"Yeah, I can guess."

"It's the only way."

"You've a right to your opinion, just don't try and convert me."

"I wouldn't dream of it, I know what you think."

"I think it's just as well your job ends when we catch him."

#new scotland yard #the come back #1972 #lwt #classic tv #tony hoare #tony wharmby #john woodvine #john carlisle #barry warren #claire warren #kenneth cranham #betty romaine #kenneth colley #robert hartley #mark dowse #geoffrey morris #shelagh wilcocks #after a thoughtful and provocative opener‚ this second episode feels a little more run of the mill; a classic 'villain out for revenge on #those who put him away'. we do get a little bit of debate about the possibility or not of reform whilst imprisoned‚ but it's brief stuff #where the meat of the episode is just identifying and tracking down the 'bad guy' (a young Ken Cranham; similarly not enough #time is devoted to considering the mental health of his character and why exactly he has become dangerously violent during his time #inside...). one odd thing; the first episode sort of established Carlisle's character as having some socialist sympathies‚ putting him at #odds with the greyly impartial (but probably vaguely conservative‚ with a small c) Woodvine. weirdly‚ their politics appear to have #switched entirely here; Woodvine is reticent to demonise Cranham without solid proof of his involvement‚ expresses some sympathy #for his situation‚ whilst his subordinate Carlisle is now apparently in favour of the death penalty and dismisses the idea #of an insanity defence out of hand‚ sneering that it's a cop out abused by serial criminals. perhaps it's just that this is early days #and different writers are playing with these characters that aren't entirely nailed down yet‚ but it's a weird contrast to their respective #positions in the previous ep. Warren returns as Woodvine's journalist brother in law‚ so it looks like that's a recurring role #and poor Ken Colley gets rather underused as an informant (or grass as Woodvine puts it)

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