Written by John Jackson
Directed by Daniel O’Hara
Hal (to Crumb, re Lord Harry): “He was here, wasn’t he? Every day he’s getting nearer, like a tidal wave. It’s not long now. He’s going to destroy everything.”
Oh dear. Reading the reactions online from Hal’s little moment when tied to a chair about his evil side coming through to Crumb has definitely been interesting. It seems that we’ve got the debate as to whether or not Lord Harry is resurfacing because vampires genuinely cannot change or because of Captain Hatch’s growing presence in the Barry Grand Hotel but either way, it’s an interesting point of discussion.
Changing Crumb into a vampire proved that Hal has been on a slippery slope for a while and with killing Larry last week and ending this episode by drinking from the flask that Mr Rook had given him back at the start of the series, it does seem like Lord Harry really isn’t that far behind.
As interesting as I find the prospect of seeing Lord Harry in full action and as brilliant as Damien Molony was during that scene in the basement with Crumb, a part of me is really hoping that somehow, Hal can actually beat his evil side (as this episode made it very Angel/Angelus) and be a better man because there was certainly a lot that showed that Hal is capable of being better as a person/vampire.
For a start, he finally took responsibility for both Crumb and Alan and did his very best to try and get them off the blood. Even when Crumb staked an unrepentant Alan, Hal still did his best to try and keep his progeny on the right track, even going as far as to tell Crumb about one of his reverting times and an old lover of his as well. It seems that when it comes to women, Hal certainly has a type and they’re the strong willed sort.
I did wonder whether or not this show would attempt anything with Hal and Alex given their current circumstances but it seems that it very much just might do so. Crumb found himself enraged that Alex only went on a date with him more for Hal’s peace of mind rather than having an actual interest in him and both Hal and Alex seemed to protest a little too much when Crumb accused them of having feelings for each other as well.
However the most interesting Crumb really did in this episode was succumb to drinking werewolf blood and dying, just so that he wouldn’t have a future like his recruiter’s. I’m not gonna pretend that Crumb’s death was sad because even though he had a few good scenes, the broad comedy aspects of the character made it difficult to care about him and to be honest, I don’t think I could’ve taken another episode with the character as well.
We’ve had some truly brilliant vampires on this show but Crumb wasn’t one of them and this episode overall brought his storyline to a much needed and swift conclusion. Besides with Hal about to go down a very dangerous path, what could Crumb have really added to the mix? Plus, his actual date with Alex was one of the most painful scenes to watch. The fact that she didn’t stake him herself was a bloody miracle. I certainly would’ve if I had to spend more than five minutes with him.
Thankfully not the guest characters were annoying this week. Sheltered werewolf Bobby was one of the most sympathetic characters we’ve had on the show and it was nice to see Tom going from being a dick to Bobby to reaching out and trying to help him over Rook’s more repressed way of dealing with him. Bobby also worked so well as a guest character because his death at Captain Hatch’s hands made me genuinely sad for the guy.
Speaking of Hatch – getting Rook to use Bobby to try and kill people in the Hotel wasn’t his best move. Hal, Tom and Alex managed to put a stop to it and Hatch made himself known to Alex as well. The more I think about it, the more I honestly do think that out of the trinity, it really will be Alex who’ll end up becoming Hatch’s undoing whereas right now, Tom and Hal do seem too prone into playing into his hands.
Also in “The Greater Good”
No flashback this week but Hal’s mentioning of his relationship with Sylvie definitely felt like a rethread of Lady Mary from the previous episode.
Alex (re Crumb): “So, what are we gonna say?”
Hal: “Stop killing people?”
Together Crumb and Alan seemed more like a couple than two guys trying to score with Alex. I also liked the use of their victim Hazel haunting Crumb and causing him to stake Alan during withdrawal.
Hal (to Alex, re Crumb/Alan): “There’s been enough death and violence. This is where it ends.”
Hazel/Alan (to Crumb): “Really if I wasn’t already dead, I would die laughing.”
Bobby’s obsession with an answering machine was poignant when we learned that it was due to him wanting to hear a message from his mother. That being said, Tom really did get that quickly off EBay.
Bobby: “You’re brilliant.”
Tom: “I think brilliant is a bit – am I? I don’t know like, it’s your decision mate.”
Hal (to Crumb): “I always have a rough idea when I’m about to revert. This time, it came from nowhere.”
It was a little on the heavy handed side with Rook’s Trinity (Joker/Queen/King) and Hatch’s 666 during their card game.
Hal: “All we are doing is marking the time until the inevitable happens.”
Alex: “Kind of like life then?”
Captain Hatch (re Hal/Tom): “Which one are you after?”
Mr Rook: “Neither I’m afraid. For one thing, they seem to have rehabilitated.”
I noticed that even though Alex was mentioned to Rook several times, he didn’t quite seem to be paying attention to being told there’s a ghost living with Tom and Hal.
Mr Rook (re Bobby): “It’s done.”
Captain Hatch: “Relax. It’s for the greater good.”
Captain Hatch (to Mr Rook): “It’s them, you’ve got to do something about them. Hal and Tom, they’ll ruin everything. We’ll never have the chaos we need with them around.”
It seems BBC3 are keen to soften the blow of this show’s imminent ending with the trailer of their upcoming zombie drama, In The Flesh airing after this episode aired. I’ll admit it does look good.
Crumb (to Hal): “Looks like I win.”
Chronology: Not long since the events of “Pie And Prejudice”.
Although it’s probably in some ways a little weaker than the previous three episodes, I do think “The Greater Good” is still a strong episode. I probably could’ve done with less of Crumb and it’s a little frustrating that Hal and Tom seem unaware of Hatch’s antics but at least Alex is becoming privy to his ways.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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