3.5 The Longest Day We all knew Herrick was making a comeback, but who knew it would be treated in such a unique way as this? You could argue that it’s a bit of a cop out to have Herrick losing his mind, but then there’s plenty of ambiguity in ‘Uncle Billy’, leading viewers to wonder just how much he’s letting on. One thing’s for sure: the Box Tunnel massacre is up from the floorboards and out of the bag. Without his friends, Mitchell would be nothing, and this was most apparent in the unexpected smackdown between him and George. Perhaps more unexpected was that George has a heck of a right hook on him, even without a full moon backing him up. The tender moments that followed, with George pledging his allegiance to his family-to-be, but making it clear just how much his relationship with Mitchell meant to him, were nicely played. A lovely scene, and one that presented a welcome break from the doom and gloom surrounding the episode. Was Mitchell wise to keep his clippings under a loose floorboard? Probably not, to be honest. A safe? Sure. In an old sock down the back of his wardrobe? Perhaps. But under a squeaky, easy to lift floorboard? These vampires could do with more smarts, really. I’m delighted that the writers have brought this into play now, though. With three episodes to go, it seems that an awful lot of plot points are about to collide, as Mitchell’s dirty little secret is sure to find its way to Annie and George, while the potential for Barry’s residents discovering that there’s nothing natural about any of them is always there. As for George and Nina’s baby, all seems well, thank goodness. How will Nina cope with this new found knowledge, though? Will she tell Mitchell she knows? How will he react? All questions that deserve answers, and I’m sure we’ll get some. I’m also hopeful that we’ll get another face-off between the two, as the one in tonight’s outing was pure drama, the two actors showcasing how strong the show’s acting is, generally. Herrick’s future seems uncertain. Having convinced, intentionally or otherwise, Nina to call the police, he also tried to unsettle Annie, unsuccessfully, as it happens, as a new, tougher ghost emerged throughout the episode, helped along the way by Mitchell’s earlier chastising. More importantly, how did he survive George’s head ripping? Viewers know the basics, of course, but Mitchell wants all the details, his own imminent ending preying heavily on the mind. The episode largely hung on the strength of social worker Wendy’s visit, which played out rather well. Actress Nicola Walker played it for laughs just as much as the rest of the cast, and fitted in rather well as a result. And while there were some moments requiring the suspension of disbelief, Nina’s takedown of her was pure TV gold, although the show’s increasing reliance on overacting the comedy still grates from time to time. Speaking of which, didn’t George have a particularly squeaky outing? Read our review of episode 4, The Pack, here. Follow Den Of Geek on Twitter right here.
