Season 42 - The Mystery of Edwin Drood (2012)
For years I put off watching The Mystery of Edwin Drood because I wanted to read the unfinished manuscript by Dickens in order to read Dan Simmons's Drood. Then when this movie came out, because even if they call it a miniseries, only two hour-long episodes only equals a movie, I still hadn't gotten around to my previous goals so I thought I'd wait. Well, seeing as it's now way over a decade later and I still haven't gotten around to reading, well, either of the aforementioned books, I figured it was time to watch this adaptation. Plus, I was going through severe Freddie Fox withdrawal. Who would have thought I'd ever like anyone other than Tom Hiddleston playing Loki!?! And now that Freddie's really the only socially acceptable male Fox, how could I not give into the craving? Which sadly this didn't quite assuage. In fact, if you really need a Freddie Fox fix Year of the Rabbit episode three, "Gangs," is perfection. There is of course the first few seasons of Slow Horses, but, things don't end up so well for him there.... Back to Dickens! There are many problems with this "miniseries," the most glaring of which is how forgettable it is. I just watched this and I am struggling to recall anything that happened. The problem was this should have been minimally a three-part adaptation. It's just too short to get the full panoply of Dickensian characters. This is exacerbated by the fact that the entire first episode is basically Matthew Rhys in a drugged fug, making anything happening too hard to comprehend even for Hunter S. Thompson. Which, if they had stretched this to three episodes would have been mitigated. Because the angry dissociation of the first episode would have been just part of our tale not half of it. Well, more than half of it because it's not like John Jasper is giving up the drugs anytime soon. And yes, I think if Dickens had survived Wilkie Collins would have possibly had a valid case for libel. But the saving grace of this series is David Dawson as Bazzard. David Dawson who just happens to play Joseph Merrick, "The Elephant Man," in the aforementioned episode of Year of the Rabbit, "Gangs." Seriously, go watch that episode. It might be one of the funniest things you'll ever watch in your entire life. While here David Dawson brings the Dickensian vibe this series was so sorely missing in its first half. He is the clerk to Edwin Drood's fiance's guardian. And given this is Dickens, that's actually a concise relationship. Usually they are all convoluted and full of secrecy. He basically gets stuck into all the mysteries and secrets and just solves everything. I'm sad that he couldn't solve the problem of this show, but there's only so much one character can do. Especially if he's given only one episode to do it in.
There needs to be a special prize for The Terror because it was able to include every single British male actor of a certain age. Is that Tobias Menzies and Ciarán Hinds having a Rome reunion? Yes it is! Is that Fisher Bloom from Lark Rise to Candleford I see, aka Matthew McNulty? Yes in one! Could that be Victor Colleano from Mr Selfridge? But of course! On and on you will name check every actor in this series, yes that IS George Warleggan's dogsbody, but there are literally SO MANY characters you will have no idea who's who so you will literally be calling Victor Victor instead of Henry Collins and Fisher is Fisher, not Lt. Edward Little. And yes, I had to look up their names because I literally had no idea what their names were even though I devoured every episode of this show that merges the history of a doomed expedition to find the Northwest Passage with supernatural elements from Native folklore. So you're probably wondering why watch this show that leaves you scratching your head half the time wondering who everyone is referring to? The answer is twofold and it's two characters that are polar opposites (see what I did with the polar joke?) Henry Goodsir played by Paul Ready and Cornelius Hickey played by Adam Nagaitis are just riveting. You will never love a character as much as Henry Goodsir and you will never hate a character as much as Cornelius Hickey. Henry Goodsir is a creature of pure light and goodness and you will want to protect him from all the ills of the world while every time Cornelius Hickey is on screen you will be calling for his head on a pike. These two made the series. These two deserved Emmy nominations. But the problem there is you'd have to remember their names... 
