[spoilers] Zaf

[bertowud]

YOUCANTRUSTME1, welcome to the forum. It's always great to have more Americans on the board.

Please be mindful of spoilers. I've edited your post to use the spoiler tags this time.

[YOUCANTRUSTME1]

Thanks- and sorry about the spoilers- will most cetainly remember that next time around.

[JHyde]

I wanted to resurrect this thread as I love Zaf and we're about to encounter his character in the re-watch very soon.

Personally, I don't think Zaf ever had more than maybe two really good storylines that could be considered his own. I think 4.6 and 5.3 were the closest he had. Perhaps this is why Raza left and I wouldn't blame him if it was.

There's this amazing moment in 4.6 (I think) where they're raiding a house of Pakistanis and they're not involved and you see Zaf look around him and his face says 'here we are again, creating chaos that might just come back to bite us on the arse'.

I also loved the dynamic between Zaf and Ruth. That moment on the docks in 5.5 when Ruth asks him to smile if they ever see each other, somewhere in the world again is so, so sad. Because we know Zaf doesn't have so very long himself.

I love that final shot you see of him from behind in 6.1, the last shot of him which adds to the mystery of what happened to him, explored throughout season 6. Zaf's death is the one that in 'spooks world' every officer must dread. For it to happen to someone like Zaf, who was good and kind, is just awful. It's not something you want to think about too much.

This is my 3000th post on the forum. I draw attention to that only because it would be customary for me to make it about Harry or Ruth, but Zaf has always been one of my very favourite characters on the show and I don't think he gets enough attention, so I wanted to come and chat about him for a bit. I wish he had enjoyed better storylines before being written out.

[Aria]

Congrats on your 3000th post, JHyde. Hope the next 3000 are just as fun.

I also liked Zaf and think the writers missed a trick with his character. His friendships with Ruth and Adam and later Jo were good and I liked his scenes with Ros early season 5. But it seemed, that apart from the 2 episodes you mentioned, his character was the light relief, the comic/lighter element before the real business of the episode took place. He enjoyed his dirty tricks campaign against the racist M.P in 4.3 but the real "action" taking place involved Adam and Fiona. His job as bellhop in the Havensworth op seemed to sum up his position within the Grid and with the writers.

[Beatriz]

Congratulations on your 3000th posts! WOW!!!

I think they didn't make the most of his character, I agree he didn't have proper storyline, we don't know much about him and it's a pity, they writers missed a good oportunity to develop his character... He was more than the funny character

[JHyde]

One of the reasons I love 5.3 so much (apart from Harry and Ruth's date, of course) is that fantastic scene with Ros in the housing office. It really is one of my favourite scenes ever and sets the scene for a dynamic that led to Ros going looking for him at the end of 6.2. I would have liked to see more Ros/Zaf time.

Thanks for the congrats guys. It's a little bit embarrassing actually, 3000 posts.

[A Cousin]

I agree that Zaf was sorely underused. I think the character had great potential but it was almost as if the writers didn't know what to do with him. I think the writers were so tied up in other character arcs in S5 and S6 that they missed the boat with Zaf. At its heart, Spooks is an ensemble piece. Any imbalance to this and it stops working correctly. If the writers didn't know what to do with Zaf, it becomes imbalanced. It is a testament to Raza Jaffrey that so many really enjoyed his portrayal of Zaf without much to go on. At least he had a heroic "exeunt." The look on his face as he told Adam to go it etched into my brain.

I would not blame Raza Jaffrey for leaving on his own accord because his character was going no where, but I find it difficult to believe that he would leave something that high profile without having something else set up in advance. It looks like he went right smack into Mistresses? Greener pastures perhaps? As much as they joke about flipping to back of each script to see if their character survives, I would imagine that there would be something contractually and in union agreements protecting any actor from losing their job with little to no notice. In addition, I would imagine that they would know the length of the contract they are signing from the get-go.

Ooohhh...I'd love to see their contracts, or at least a template of their contracts!

[JHyde]

That basically how I feel about it. I also love that last look.

I just think it's a great pity he got 'moments' not storylines. Ruth waited a season and a half before she got really good storylines. Jo was written in such a way from the beginning that she had bits to herself. Ros and Adam were the heroes of the piece and Harry was Harry with enough to go on at least from late season 1.

It's no coincidence that Zaf is written as a prop piece in most fan fics.