Chris Connor reviews the third episode of Slow Horses season 2…
After a solid opening two episodes to Slow Horses’ second season, the plot moves forward at a rapid pace in the aptly titled ‘Drinking Games’. Following his discovery at the conclusion of last week’s episode Min is taken by the Russians for a few drinks and is later found dead in a seemingly innocent looking cycling accident while drunk.
As with the death of Dickie Bow, Gary Oldman’s Jackson Lamb suspects fowl play and the episode is built around the concurrent investigation into Min’s death and how it ties to previous events while River is undercover as a journalist in the sleepy village of Upshott.
The more mundane nature of River’s rural digging is offset by the work of the team in London, preparing for the meeting with the Russians arranged by Spider Webb, while dealing with the news of Mins death which hits Louisa especially hard.
River’s undercover storyline adds a comedic element to proceedings as he pretends to the goofy Jonathan Walker while striking up a rapport with a local pub landlady whose family have ties to the flying club that is the last known location of Dickie’s killer. This also allows Jack Lowden to flex his acting muscles and show an ability to move between comedy and action.
Oldman is impressive as ever as the standoffish rogue that is Jackson Lamb, perhaps more moved by Mins’s death than it may appear and determined to see what links it to Dickie’s death. Roddy and Shirley meanwhile are somewhat side-lined in this episode but across the course of six episodes and with an ensemble cast this is perhaps to be expected and the pair still get their moments to prove useful in the investigation.
Daniel Pemberton’s score consistently delivers, building a sense of unease and suspense in both storylines as the lines begin to straddle and the various members of Slough House try to decipher exactly what is going on and if things are as straightforward as they seem.
The series continues to deftly manoeuvre the various pieces of its jigsaw into place with some subtle changes from Mick Herron’s novel that help to streamline the various threads and make it a natural fit for TV while not failing to lose the strength of the source material.
‘Drinking Games’ sees Slow Horses second season reach its midpoint and its quality level hasn’t abated in the slightest. This episode, as with the books before i,t shows no member of the Slough House team is safe so we as an audience shouldn’t get too attached. This makes the stakes feel higher and the cost all the more personal, here especially for Louisa. The central narratives are fascinatingly poised as we ponder how they overlap and what the endgame for all involved might be.
Slow Horses continues to be one of the finest espionage shows in recent years, impeccably acted and put together by all involved and one can only hope that it maintains this quality threshold moving forward.
Chris Connor
