| Asmoth First aired in UK: 5th July 2003 First aired in Canada: 25th November 2003 Written by: Andrew Marshall Directed by: Simon Massey John Strange: Richard Coyle Jude Atkins: Samantha Janus Canon Black: Ian Richardson Toby: Andrew Lee Potts Doddington: Samuel Barnett Kevin: Timmy Lang Joey: William Tomlin Guest Cast: Tom Baker (Father Bernard) , Ken Bradshaw (Houseman) , Fiona Bruce (Lynn) , James Carcaterra (Ken) , Jim Carter (Inspector Stuart) , Kerry Elkins (Helen Baxter), Souad Faress (Mrs Singh) , Sarah Flind (Swimming Pool Manager) , Sean Harris (Robin Thomas) , Claire Jennings (Jean) , Alistair McKenzie (Voice of Azal), Michael Mellinger (Patient) , Donald Pelmear (Mr Parish). Read the original 'Reaction Summary' What happened... In this final episode of the series, Jude is visited in her dreams by her ex, the demon Azal. “He’s still here, and he’s hungry,” he warns. Meanwhile John Strange has sent Kevin on holiday and will talk to nobody, until his former mentor, a blind monk Father Bernard turns up, with news human flesh and bones being discovered in a swimming pool. Strange and Bernard both fear the involvement of the demon Asmoth, while all parties set about investigating. Discovering a tooth crown at the scene of the crime leads Strange to a Mr Robin Thomas, a very suspicious character. While this is going on, Jude investigates Strange’s past, learning of his suspected involvement in the death of his girlfriend Helen, who was apparently killed by Asmoth. Strange was questioned regarding the murder of Helen and others, but was released, despite his seemingly detailed knowledge of events. Canon Black is not silent in this affair, warning Father Bernard to be cautious, while sending Strange a copy of the Asmoth inscription found in the previous episode. He’s not being as generous as you may think however, as it leads him straight into the hands of Police Inspector Stewart, who arrests John, and takes all Toby’s equipment while he’s at it. After Mr Thomas is found skulking around the monastery, Kevin returns acting particularly suspiciously and Jude comes to the realisation that Thomas is in fact an anagram of Asmoth. Father Bernard is rushed to hospital with serious injuries, and leaves Jude the message, “a trap.” Further revelations occur when Jude discovers that Thomas works in the hospital, responsible for transporting amputated body parts to the incinerator! Of course, he manages to capture Jude, who is saved by Joey, exhibiting powers worryingly like his father’s, but with no memory immediately afterwards. Thomas is indeed not Asmoth, just a rather unstable young man, that believes eating human flesh will increase his lung capacity enough for him to become a champion swimmer. No demonic activity here, just a series of unfortunate coincidences. Meanwhile Strange, beaten nearly to death by the police who believe him to be a serial killer, struggles for his life in the ICU... What I thought... I have to say, without a doubt, this is the best episode of the series. The main cast are all at the top of their games, with Richard Coyle providing us with a perfect mix of brooding and mysterious, although it’s a bit of a shame that his role in this final episode was perhaps smaller than others. Samantha Janus seems to get the bulk of this episode, and if you ask me she absolutely shines, proving to the many critics of her performance that she really can act. Ian Richardson is also electrifyingly intense... I was quite convinced his eyes were going to burst into flame, and just about everything he did in this episode was something to make you go “ooh.” The star of the show however, was undoubtedly former Doctor Who star Tom Baker. He steals any scene he’s in with his little one-liners, and just pure ‘Tom Bakerness.’ Perhaps the most intriguing thing about this episode however, is that while it revolves around the threat of Asmoth... the villain of the piece is nothing but a deranged human. By this point the show was attracting a fair amount of criticism for being far too formulaic, so it was great to see this final episode completely defy the stereotype. The greatest tragedy however, is that we will never conclusively know what was going on. Everybody has their theories, and I’ve managed to bring you some hints courtesy of Mr Marshall, but there will probably never be a definitive answer. Was Strange guilty? Was he possessed by Asmoth, or was he himself nothing but a deluded human? What was going on with Joey’s powers, and just why was Kevin acting so suspiciously? And most importantly, will Strange ever wake up? The episode just raises far too many questions, but it was absolutely the best of the run. What they said... Sadly by this point in the life of Strange, the press coverage was waning, so there’s not so many gems to pull out on this episode, but there are a few! However this episode was mentioned in some of the earliest reports on the production of the series, notably for its inclusion of the wonderful Tom Baker. On the official BBC site, writer Andrew Marshall compared the experience of making Strange to “a little like Three Years Hard Labour, followed by a Public Flogging - except slightly less light-hearted,” going on to comment that “The balance between mystery, clarity, shock and humour has to be calculated at every moment.” If you ask me, this episode got the balance exactly right. Also talking to the BBC site, Ian Richardson had some interesting words to say about working with Tom Baker on this episode. “He's about the only one who was my contemporary and we had only one scene together,” he explains, “which was specially written for us both because initially there was not a scene between Father Bernard and the Cannon,” while Tom Baker himself commented, “Quite up my street playing demented, strange, improbable monks,” going on to say “You know I couldn't be in The Bill or things like that, it doesn't engage me but stick a frock on me...” Dreamwatch’s coverage of this episode in #108, featured the views of director Simon Massey, commenting on the darkness of the finale, while also lamenting that TV can’t go quite as dark as it once could... although concluding on the dramatic climax with Jude and Robin Thomas, “Everybody couldn’t wait to get out after we’d shot the scene!” Andrew Marshall explores the character of Father Bernard a little deeper, giving him the label of “Canon White,” portraying him as the “opposite balancing figure to Canon Black,” and also expressing a desire that he would return, as well as dropping some other hints about “future seasons” of Strange. Sadly as we know, there was never an opportunity for this to come to fruition. A tragedy I tell you!! Back To: Episode Guide StrangeOnline Home |
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