Hell Hath No Fury Like A Woman Scorned
So here we go, six weeks have passed and Angela Black finally looks set to deliver a dramatic and conclusive chapter to this Sunday night drama.
How did Olivier and Theo meet?
We start off episode 6 in the past, as Theo and Olivier wind up on the same train together. With problems on the train (now we know it’s definitely an authentic English drama!) Ed and Olivier get talking. After numerous drinks, Olivier spills his truth that Angela is going to leave with the kids and there’s nothing he can do. Theo perks up though, especially when he learns about the Ed Harrison books. In exchange for helping Olivier with his Angela problem, Theo wants help burning down his business and getting an alibi to cover his own back.
The Road Trip To Wales
In the present, Angela grabs her kids from school and scrambles back to the car. They decide to just drive, but this singular act does not look good for her. Olivier knows this too and rings the police, playing up the concerned husband. When he concludes their conversation, he takes a rock and smashes up the picture of Angela, reinforcing how dangerous he actually is. Angela ends up driving to Wales, hitching up in a caravan for the time being. Unfortunately, the boys wind up using Angela’s phone when she leaves it unattended. Of course, this also means Olivier receives a location ping on his computer. Inevitably, he heads up on site and begins sniffing around. When Angela burns her hand on the stove, she leaves the kids alone while she runs it under cold water. In her absence though, Olivier grabs the kids and takes off. Angela stops him though, at least temporarily, but seeing the kids and Olivier leave is the last straw.
How does Angela get her revenge?
Angela heads back to town and reflects on the mantra her Nan used to utter. “If you live in Hell long enough, that’s when you get the devil in you.” So Angela breaks into Mantle Motors, smashing the cars up. Theo notices her on the CCTV cameras and calls on Olivier’s help to deal with this problem. Only, there’s a big twist here. It turns out Angela and Theo are actually working together to frame Olivier, with Theo hitting Angela and calling the police. Now, I’m guessing they deleted the CCTV footage and Angela wiped down the doors to make sure she’s not spotted, but we don’t really see any of this on-screen. The footage not deleted though is that inside the house. Angela convinces the police to check out thee CCTV footage around her home, which quite clearly captures Olivier holding Angela by the neck.
What happens to Theo? Who is at the door?
With Olivier locked up for the time being, Angela turns her attention to Theo. Sure, he helped Angela out but only for a higher price than Olivier was asking for. Angela understands he could be a problem in the future and rings Theo. She promises his life is about to get more interesting. She’s found Craig Mantle, a guy he put away through his testifying. She’s told him where Theo lives and just like that, rapping at the door seems to hint that Mantle is there to square old debts. Before we see that though, the scene cuts.
How does Angela Black end?
Angela hears that Olivier is awaiting trial and it seems like be’s going to be put away for a while, at least if her lawyer is to be believed. As Angela heads outside with the boys, she finds a piano and prepares to play.
The Episode Review
So Angela Black bows out with its empowering finale that ultimately falls flat. The script tries to be clever with its double-twist but in doing so, just throws up more contrivances and issues. The way Angela just suddenly goes full-on cold-blooded assassin doesn’t feel right for her character, especially how quickly it comes about, although I do understand why she’s snapped. The ending leaves loose ends in a plot that’s lacked urgency and enough thrills to sustain it across 6 hours of run-time. Angela being in the mental institution, for example, really didn’t need a whole episode. Likewise, the numerous artistic camera angles and visual design amounts for nothing with such a weak script. Brownie points should be awarded for the depiction of domestic violence though, but beyond that there’s just not enough here to make for an enjoyable, binge-worthy drama. ITV’s latest is ultimately a disappointment.
