Computers are surely one of man's most
important discoveries.
Through computers people are able to
communicate with people from all around the world, start businesses,
do taxes and most important, play solitaire. But often in speculative
fiction thought have been given as to what the next step might be for
these machines that are now integrating themselves into every waking
moment of our lives.
One of the biggest achievements would
be a computer that has intelligence and is able to learn and adapt to
it's surroundings. That way rather than a computer becoming a cold
machine that interrupts data it would become an instrument capable of
so much more.
It is this aspect of technology that
the latest adventure of Dirk Gently (Stephen Mangan and Richard
Macduff (Darren Boyd) focuses on, as Dirk returns to his Cambridge
roots to help the one person who he felt believed in him, Professor
Jericho (Bill Patterson) who hires Dirk on as a security expert.
Of course, soon afterward while Dirk is
looking for the paperwork for his expulsion from St. Cedd's, the
university's robot is stolen and then Jericho is murdered, leading to
all sort of hilarious happenings.
This episode is miles above the first
episode of the series as everyone seems a bit more solid and well
drawn in the script this time around. Dirk's romantic scenes with
Jane (Lydia Wilson) are entertaining and believable and the
supporting cast are just fantastic, making the episode move without
feeling like the script is overlong like last week's installment.
There is also a nice nod for the
Douglas Adams and Doctor Who fans in attendance as St. Cedd's is the
same university used in the televised footage shot for Douglas Adams'
Doctor Who script Shada, so it is a nice homage to Dirk's creator and
a nice treat for observant science fiction fans.
Yet again the mystery side of things is
not all that it could be, I think you will most likely figure out the
solution to the problem at hand fairly quickly but the episode itself
is enjoyable enough without having to strain your brain cells to work
out some masterful dizzying twist.
Macduff however is beginning to feel a
bit stale and repetitive to me as time goes on. It seems that being
the Robin to Dirk's Batman is simply a matter of standing around,
complaining about how Dirk refuses to name him openly as a partner in
the Holistic Detective Agency while making the occasional cup of tea.
He also get to argue with his girlfriend Susan (Helen Baxendale), who
also seems to be there just to take pot shots at Dirk.
While the staleness of Macduff and
Susan would possibly not be such a big deal in a longer series where
we get to know our main characters over a much larger chunk of
television, here it really makes the programme a little less
enjoyable and a little more shallow in terms of character
development.
On the flip side of this is how much
this episode brings out a bit of a different side of Dirk Gently as
it lays out, both the hurt and vulnerable Dirk that was expelled from
St. Cedd's and the Dirk Gently that gets to show a bit more of his
passionate side with his fling with Jane.
When all's said and done Dirk Gently
continues to be an entertaining way to send an hour a week, but it's
lack of development for it's main players and it's lack of quality
sleuthing might make viewers feel glad that doses of Dirk come in
short blasts rather than long series.
-Thomas Spychalski
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