Review: GHTTB: Ashes To Ashes 1.5

Marcus and Alex talk.

Ashes To Ashes - Series One, Episode Five

In my reviews of Being Human Series Two, one Russell Tovey really, really began to grate. His OTT acting style and his inability to express emotions other than surprise and anguish meant that he never really came across as the sensitive character he was trying to be. Tovey plays a large part in Episode Five, which focuses on attitudes towards Sexuality in the typically haphazard way that Ashes To Ashes often does.
      A murder has been linked with gangster Simon Neary, whom Gene has a grudge against. Upon trying to find him, they discover only his gay lover Marcus (Tovey). Following a lead, they get evidence of Neary trading guns and chase down his weapons dealer. Alex gets the idea that if she can stop the guns trade, she can get home. Their informant killed, Alex tries to convince Marcus to give them a lead. Eventually Alex gets an undercover job at a place where Neary is organising a deal. As the team accompany a tarted-up Alex, they are shocked to discover that it's a gay bar. With Alex too... feminine for Neary's taste, so Ray has to step up to the plate to get info from him. Alex uses this to reveal to Marcus Neary's true nature, giving him the impetous to become an informant. Alex talks to her mother for guidance, and soon after Marcus comes to her and tells her about the important meeting. During their spy operation, Marcus kills Neary - after getting a confession for the death of the previous informant. Gene's grudge is solved, and Marcus has HIV. Everyone's happy.
      I'll admit that this pre-Being Human Tovey does give a wonderfully understated performance, showing that he has maybe gotten worse through the years. Here it was fine, and both he and the script did a brilliant job of demonstrating a fair view of homosexuality. Elsewhere, this episode saw the first decent characterisations of our leads - Gene had reason behind the madness, and Alex actually showed some cunning and maturity instead of flamboyant disassociation from the reality she now lives in.

Gene has a grudge to settle with Gay Gangster Neary.

      One thing that struck me about Episode Five was how on-task it was; it wove the characterisations and stories into the crime narrative. While the themes covered were just retreads of Life On Mars, it was done sufficiently well for me not to notice. There was the odd stray into Alex's storyline to contend with, but that too was done tastefully and Alex wasn't stupidly obvious about her true identity. The thing was that we didn't really feel Alex's key dilemma here; the excuse was given that by stopping gun crime she could stop Layton, despite the fact that she has both accepted that this reality is unreal and has at least three episodes to go until the finale, which is her only real chance of getting back.
     It was a step in the right direction. Episode Five could be a little dull in places, but it did what every Bonanza episode should and balanced out our characters and our main past plot. This series has been increasingly dependant on the themes of Life On Mars, and for now we'll have to deal with that, but we're getting somewhere mildly original.

Thanks.