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Tea Lady · (This post was last modified: 07-02-2010 08:49 PM by Tea Lady.)

Any thoughts? Please post.

I really liked this episode. It wasnt an action filled episode but there was a lot going on.

-I thought it a little strange that Sam went on an op with Danny. Didnt they have anyone else with more experience?
-Poor Ruth being patronised by Harry in the meeting at the start. She didnt like that. Harry still cant trust her completely though, even though he knows her worth (work wise.)
-Loved Malcolm with his farmer Giles jacket and flat cap. His comment to Tom "I think she's splendid" is so cute. Poor Malcolm though. Zoe would never go for him in a million years.
-Loved the blue sweater sexist comment. Very funny.
-Again poor Ruth. The scene where they are all sitting in Harry's office with their coats on apart from Ruth who you can see in the distance, excluded and alone.
-Loved the look Harry gave Ruth at the end. Not just the look but the way Harry seems to think about it first before looking. Is it the right thing to do? It's almost like Ruth is hoping he looks at her in that moment and she's waiting for it.

I felt very sorry for Gordon Blaney here. I think he was really a good man. Also Zoe made a good point. While Noah's dad chose that life, Noah didnt. He got caught up in something he didnt choose and lost his Dad because of it. Very sad.

**Silktie** · 08-02-2010, 05:50 AM

I also liked this episode. I felt really sorry for poor Blaney, his life destroyed like that and he basically just gets an apology at the end. I liked seeing Zoe almost being seduced by the 'normal life' she had to pretend to lead, and how she enjoyed getting through to those kids. But in the end her instincts proved correct about Blaney.

Loved Harry trying to keep Ruth from knowing how serious their IT problems were ('Of course it's a bloody crisis!' Ha!), and trying to keep her busy with the Homeric quote. And of course she still comes up with the solution despite being sidelined. I wonder if they would have realised what was going on sooner if they had trusted her from the start? It was nice of Harry to acknowledge her contribution at the end.

Tom really vascillates between detached and cold in one instance, and too emotionally involved in other instances, doesn't he?

Malcolm was really funny this episode.

**JHyde** · 08-02-2010, 10:33 AM

Yeah, that's my trouble with Brenton as a writer. His characterisation swings from scene to scene let alone from one episode to the next.

I have mixed feelings about this episode, but I do like how normality appeals to Zoe and that final moment with Harry and Ruth. And I love how he sends her out of the room and Harry gesticulates wildly for her benefit. So funny.

YourFutureMuse · 08-02-2010, 11:51 AM

I loved this episode, particularly Zoe and how she is genuinely trying to be a good teacher and I think she gets a sense of what her life could've been like if she had chosen a different path. It also threw up lots of issues which I think are tantamount to the whole Spooks concept - like the moral issues of lying, Zoe's conscience over Blaney and the issues Noah had as a result of his Dad being in the service. I think it raised a good point - surely Zoe did have a responsibility to teach the children even though she was only undercover as she could've impacted on their lives. I loved how she used Dido lyrics lol.

I think Sam got sent with Danny for training purposes because she said something like she wasn't going to learn by being outside - I think they sent her out to get some real experience.

lwhite53 · (This post was last modified: 09-02-2010 01:05 AM by lwhite53.)

I liked this ep because it envisions the aftermath of an op gone bad -- Victor Gleeson's death and Noah Gleeson's insanity.

Sam out in the field for the first time -- strange idea! Ruth pacing at the beginning of the ep when they receive the first message on the computer screen -- you can almost see the wheels turning in her brain. Harry sending Ruth out of the room -- he clearly doesn't trust her yet

Spoiler: show

I loved the set up of Gordon Blaney as the fall guy-- Noah gives them a credible suspect and they all, sans Zoe, jump on it. They take everything Blaney says and twist it to fit their pre-conceived agenda. When Blaney tells Zoe, "I think whoever's playing you people's playing you good," he's absolutely right. They're so convinced they've got the right person they don't even look elsewhere.

Zoe going undercover as a teacher was a really good idea -- feeds into her quandary about wanting a "real" life outside MI5.

Malcolm (re Zoe): "I think she's splendid." Awwww.

Tom and Dr. Vicky -- she's trouble -- run, Tom, run!! And Zoe and Carlo -- you just know that's going to end badly, too.

Zoe: "Any particular sweater in mind?" Tom and Danny: "The blue one." -- She looks at them with disgust! Great moment.

The mouthy boy in the classroom -- cheeky sod!

And even though Ruth's been sent to the corner, she inevitably solves 1) the "94" question and 2) the riddle of the Iliad and figures out what's really going on. Harry shoots her an appraising look at the end, like he's re-evaluating her potential worth for them. Also, I think this is the first ep that we see him looming over her shoulder, looking at her computer screen.

(08-02-2010 10:33 AM)JHyde Wrote: Yeah, that's my trouble with Brenton as a writer. His characterisation swings from scene to scene let alone from one episode to the next.

This wasn't a Brenton script, it was written by Matthew Graham. 2.4 is Brenton's.

**JHyde** · (This post was last modified: 09-02-2010 04:09 AM by JHyde.)

Sorry, got the two episodes mixed up in my head. I hate most of the season 2 commentaries, and Matthew Graham always comes across as such a tosser, I'm sorry. Not just on Spooks either, but Life on Mars commentaries. Some of his stuff is great though - and I can't hate him too much as it was he who drafted in NW and came up with the character of Ruth even though Brenton wrote her first episode.

I've said it elsewhere, but I'm really not a big fan of season 2, although I do find a couple of later episodes moving. So forgive me if I don't have my customary level of accuracy and excitement.

**Silktie** · 09-02-2010, 05:49 AM

(09-02-2010 12:20 AM)lwhite53 Wrote: I liked this ep because it envisions the aftermath of an op gone bad -- Victor Gleeson's death and Noah Gleeson's insanity.

And even though Ruth's been sent to the corner, she inevitably solves 1) the "94" question and 2) the riddle of the Iliad and figures out what's really going on. Harry shoots her an appraising look at the end, like he's re-evaluating her potential worth for them. Also, I think this is the first ep that we see him looming over her shoulder, looking at her computer screen.

Good points, lwhite. It's a pity, though, that kid could have been a huge asset once he was older. It was nice to see Harry's empathy with Noah at the end, and that MI5 ensured that he gets the best care possible. I also liked the twist of Noah paying that woman to pretend to be his mother, the kid had a really devious streak.

Hee, and poor Ruth, how she gets anything done with the boss breathing down her neck like that is a mystery.

lwhite53 · 09-02-2010, 01:51 PM

At this point, interestingly enough, Ruth doesn't even react to Harry standing behind her. Nothing happening yet . . .

**Nitrus** · 09-02-2010, 07:48 PM

Blue sweater comment is LEGENDARY.. definitely one of my favorites from Spooks.

I'll ignore the massive inaccuracies relating to computer security in this episode lol.

Btw, thank you so much Tea Lady for posting the threads for these episodes.

Tea Lady · 09-02-2010, 07:58 PM

That's ok. I was waiting and waiting and no one else did and I was afraid we were losing momentum a little. The one episode per week should help.