[SPOILERS] I feel like a killjoy, but despite the fact Persons Unknown's been delivering considerable dollops of information in recent weeks, I can't help feeling indifferent about the show. I think it's partly because, by the end of "Static", things essentially reverted to where we were four episodes ago in the central storyline, so this mini-arc involving Joe (Jason Wiles) feels like filler in retrospect. It was all a way to undo the narrative problem that Joe, a "mole" sympathetic to the captives, knew too much about The Program (and potentially how to escape), so the writers were forced to use the cheesy reset of drug-induced amnesia...Joe's back in town, shorn of body hair and his memories of the other captives, including beloved Janet (Daisy Betts). Even worse, he's suffering from sporadic psychotic breaks because of his brainwashing, which result in him becoming violent and attacking those who upset him (throttling Janet in the Chinese restaurant, nearly killing the Night Watchman by throwing him through a window). Joe's become a very real problem, so the group are forced to devise a way to neutralize the threat he poses, although a few are more hopeful he can be rehabilitated.
We also had a our first proper glimpse behind the curtain at The Organization: a rather dull room full of people sat at computers watching surveillance footage, presided over by Irishman Mr. Ulrich (Alan Smyth), who in turn reported to the temperamental, tea-drinking Director (Joanna Lipari). For the unobservant, the Director's played by the same actress who guest-starred as Organization escapee Angela last week -- so either the Director likes to go undercover as an imprisoned lunatic, the Organization's leaders are replaced by clones, or it just so happens that Angela has an evil twin sister who's the boss.
A lot of this episode didn't make sense to me. Why would The Organization go to such lengths to erase Joe's memories (particularly his love for Janet) if its just going to send him haywire? Why not just remove him from the town entirely? I just don't see why Joe's deemed so important by The Director, where it's mentioned he's close to progressing to the next level. Is this "process" like a game? The Organization also seem to be curiously out of touch with the town's events, relying almost entirely on the Night Watchman's (Andy Greenfield) inside reports. Is the town just one of many pies they have their fingers in, and not their sole focus?
Emotionally, this episode was about Janet coping with the man she loves forgetting about her and becoming a threat to her own life. The reason it didn't work for me is simple: Janet and Joe only have this great unspoken romance in the minds of the writers, as I really don't sense any chemistry between the actors or a romantic spark to how the characters are written.
The interminable Mark (Gerald Kyd) and Kat (Lola Glaudini) storyline continued in South America, with both anxious to get back home rather than continue their dangerous investigation now. As a love-match, they just don't work together -- but, considering how silly Joe's storyline was this week, it was more engaging seeing Mark and Kat escape the "men in blue" and, in the final seconds, stumble upon the town itself. Admittedly, I'm interested to see what happens next in this storyline. Will they wander into town and become trapped themselves, or will they be stuck on the outside perimeter but able to communicate with those inside and put an escape plan into motion?
Overall, while the fog's beginning to lift on the show's mystery, I'm not sure we've learned anything we couldn't surmise from episode 1. It's all the work of a secretive world-wide organization who kidnap people and put them inside a fortress-like town as part of a vague "process". Explaining why people are chosen and what the Organization hope to achieve are the questions we really need answers to, so am I convinced those explanations will be plausible and interesting when the finale arrives? Not really, because nothing about Persons Unknown has felt very original so far, but I'd love to be proven wrong.
Asides
- The ratings stink and the few comments my reviews receive are always negative, but I've noticed that other online critics are enjoying Persons Unknown. Am I missing something? Or is everyone else more forgiving of its deficiencies, and ignorant of The Prisoner? Actually, I get the impression US reviewers are just appreciative there'll be a definitive ending (which I am, too), but the format of a miniseries with a beginning, middle and end is more prevalent in the UK than the US, so it's nothing unusual and worth championing for me.
- Didn't an early episode include an aerial shot that pulled back to reveal the town's situated on an island, or peninsula? I don't get the impression Mark and Kat are on an island or peninsula, do you? Is this an early mistake?
- Why return Joe to the town without any backup from someone like Tom? In fact, why not erase his memories of Tom? That's what caused Joe's initial agitation that swiftly led to his breakdown.
- Whenever Erika calls Janet "Bright Eyes", am I alone in thinking about the best-selling song from Watership Down?
WRITER: Henry Robles
DIRECTOR: Michael Offer
GUEST CAST: Joanna Lipari, Alan Smyth, Andy Greenfield & Victor Alfieri
TRANSMISSION: 7 August 2010 - NBC, 8/7c
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