It is my view that the writer and director did something unusual and experimental with this teleplay, and that experiment "cost" them viewers and ratings.
Which it should not have.
It is all about timing. This six episode mini-series starts slow and picks up speed like one of those amusement park rides, until, by the time you get to very end of the finale, it seems like you are going 100 miles an hour.
This is not the traditional way to execute a narrative. But, if you give it a chance, it works just fine.
Besides, there are so many extraordinary things going on here, that I rather think the odd pacing (which was deliberate, of that there is no doubt) makes the total experience all the better. I am thinking specifically of the performances of Tom Hughes and Victoria Hamilton, which are beyond good, they are unforgettable.
And - another trick of the writer -- he saved the very best lines of dialog for the post-Dénouement (postscript), specifically the lines "It takes a whore to catch a whore" (all the more potent when directed at a man!) and "doubt will kill as surely as a bullet." If you want to know why those lines are so powerful, watch the series!
Which it should not have.
It is all about timing. This six episode mini-series starts slow and picks up speed like one of those amusement park rides, until, by the time you get to very end of the finale, it seems like you are going 100 miles an hour.
This is not the traditional way to execute a narrative. But, if you give it a chance, it works just fine.
Besides, there are so many extraordinary things going on here, that I rather think the odd pacing (which was deliberate, of that there is no doubt) makes the total experience all the better. I am thinking specifically of the performances of Tom Hughes and Victoria Hamilton, which are beyond good, they are unforgettable.
And - another trick of the writer -- he saved the very best lines of dialog for the post-Dénouement (postscript), specifically the lines "It takes a whore to catch a whore" (all the more potent when directed at a man!) and "doubt will kill as surely as a bullet." If you want to know why those lines are so powerful, watch the series!