(Some spoilers await as always)
Last week I talked about “the sandbox” of The Watch and how I was looking forward to playing more within the “inspired by” version of Discworld. Well, now we are getting deeper within the sandbox and exploring more of the guilds, much to my delight.
This week we get the backstory on why Lady Ramkin refuses to wear a badge as well as why she hates sanctioned crime, with a touching moment that I am sure we all saw coming involving the inhumation of her parents.
The team has to follow the clues for “Gawain” which they believe is in the basement of the Assassin’s Guild. To get in, they end up having to go deep undercover… as a rock band. (No, this is not music-with-rocks-in, as there are no trolls bashing rocks together.) In a scene that feels like it should have been expanded by a few minutes, they change into their alternate personas collectively named… ”The Wat?.”
Lady Ramkin meanwhile invades the Assassin’s Guild on her own as the rest of The Watch audition for the Musician’s Guild with a rocking rendition classic dwarven song called – what else? – “Gold.” After becoming official members of the Musician’s Guild, and looking hilariously radical, they get through the basement of the Musician’s Guild and gain access to the next door Assassin’s Guild. Lady Ramkin gets sidetracked when she embarks upon a path of possible revenge and ends up having a chat with Death that is somehow both heart wrenching and darkly humorous at the same time.
After discovering what “Gawain” is and where it might be, they are confronted by the Assassin’s Guild and end up using their new Musician’s Guild membership to get them out of a dire situation.
We even get to hear “All The Little Angels” which is a treat for fans of the books but will likely be seen as a new plot thread by casual fans or newcomers. This army song was sung by the watchmen of old and is a cute but somewhat spicy marching song. This version was touching and if they don’t go back to it, even in passing, expect many confused viewers.
The episode has a lot more action and exploration than the first two episodes of The Watch, and it really gives us a chance to see some impressive production value that was hinted at before which makes the world feel more fully realized.
As much fun as it was to watch our heroes become a punk/rock band, there were a few moments that didn’t work as well this week, mostly in the machinations of Carcer Dun. He didn’t feel as malicious as he did previously, just more determined. The threat of the Noble Dragon still looms overhead but things feel mostly back to normal so we don’t get a sense of fear beyond a brief line from Vetinari. Then again Ankh-Morpork is used to being burned down and rebuilt.
I also got more of that “toys in a sandbox” feeling as we meet Inigo Skimmer, who is a similar character from the books, and we even get his verbal tic where he frequently mumbles “Mhm” after he speaks. He certainly has the accountant-y normal unassuming man look down, so someone was paying attention to the books when writing this but I am not sure why.
This is where I diverge a bit, let’s walk and talk.
We are now 3 hours into an 8 hour long serialized take on The Watch of the Discworld universe, and I don’t know if the showrunners know who would be watching this show. Do a cursory search online and you will see most Discworld adherents are either completely ignoring the series or simply casting it off the edge rimward to the abyss.
See? There I used a term that you may not know if you are not familiar with the books, but if you have read the books, you will cringe a bit at the awkward inclusion. For the record, it means facing out toward the rim of the disc, toward the edge. But that line wasn’t inclusionary enough for anyone nor was it exclusionary enough to satisfy hardcore fans, it just lands flat.
That is what The Watch is doing. We get characters and concepts that a fan will notice but wonder why they did it in that way, but casual viewers end up ignoring it or feeling lost.
That’s not good, but there is still time.
What is good right now are the incredible performances yet again by Richard Dormer as Vimes, Lara Rossi as Lady Sybil Ramkin, and Wendell Pierce as Death. I personally am so used to hearing Christopher Lee or Ian Richardson as Death’s voice that it took me a bit to get used to this interpretation, but I can safely say that I am on board.
The weary yet ALL CAPITALIZED tone comes through perfectly. Vimes’ mugging never gets old and Punk Vimes is something I will treasure immensely. Lady Ramkin is probably the most surprising change of the series but my goodness she is incredibly captivating. Lara Rossi is someone that I hope we end up seeing more of stateside as she seems to be capable of handling more mainstream roles with the grace and stoic sensibilities she brings to Lady Sybil.
I was entertained, and I look forward to more adventures, as I have said before, but I worry that it doesn’t outwardly appeal to enough people to continue after these 8 episodes have run their course. It’s a shame as it has immense potential to stand on its own once it manages to get a good foothold. This episode had more action and more charm than we had seen before so I am anxiously looking forward to next Sunday’s episode which marks the halfway point of the series. Maybe it will pull a Star Trek Discovery and shape itself into something truly special. Right now It is simply entertaining and fun, and that is enough for me.
Is it enough for AMC/BBC/whoever has the checkbook to pay for more seasons? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
