Emulsional rescue

Spoilers follow, obviously

This was the episode where I stopped moaning about the differences between the source book, London Rules, and the TV show. Having delivered the paint pot scene in S5 E4 Missiles, the producers veer into completely new territory which shows MI5 at its incompetent worst (in fairness, this is not in itself a new theme for Slow Horses to explore). We finally learn more about the terrorists. Whelan and Ho plumb new depths, although it looks as though poor River has further to fall. 

River and Coe have a quite spiky scene in the car, bickering about cherry stones, before a debrief with Lamb that will be in every highlights compilation. We still sense that River wants to be useful and to do his best, but his ability to read people or scenes is now totally shot and he’s completely oblivious to this. All he has left is fighting moves, and these are the spook skills that Coe respects the least, having been on the receiving end of them. Later, River misses cues and clues when his grandfather, the OB, calls him, because he’s too busy critiquing Shirley’s exploration of Roddy Ho’s momentos from his time with Tara (which include old t-bones and teabags, hair and actual clues which the gang of course notice but ignore).

Meanwhile, the terrorists have revealed their nationality (Libyan) if not what they are after. Lamb trots over to the Park to notify Whelan and Taverner of the slow horses’ involvement in saving Jaffrey and glosses over Gimball’s death by paint tin. Taverner is all for hearing Jackson out (and they share a moment of mutual professional respect), but Whelan seems to have had a fatal boost in confidence from the news of Gimball’s fatality. He cuts down Lamb, tries to steer Flyte’s interrogation of Tara away from the terror plan and sets sail on an obviously-doomed attempt to use Tara to find her accomplices. 

Even – especially – if Tara were actually working with MI5, their tube plan is flawed from the start. What is the use of having Flyte’s agents on the train behind? As soon as they lose visibility, she’s not safe. That she doesn’t raise this herself is a cause for multiple red flags.

At this point the terrorists have MI5 completely in their pocket. They’ve left airport maps and plans in their van to deflect MI5, they’ve downloaded Whelan’s file, which may have told them how open he would be to a second honey trap, and they know enough about tech nerds to understand how to bring down the entire digital intelligence system. Let’s face it, they’re better than Ho and Duncan, whose preening rivalry is done so well as to be beyond humour. I think many readers and viewers will have had some sympathy for Roddy’s lack of anything resembling human understanding, but his look of triumph as the screens scream to black around him reminds us (if we’d needed it) that for all his self-proclaimed technical wizardry he’s a complete liability.

Back in series 1, Roddy said he’d need a while to find a number plate. Catherine found it in minutes by making a phone call. Now that the tech’s down and analogue skills are needed, the horses are back. And it looks like Molly and the OB will be playing their part.

Here’s how Cafethinking covered the book on which series 5 is based.

Thoughts on episode 1.

And episode 2…

…And episode 3

…And episode 4

…And episode 6