Wanderlust episode 3 review ★★★★★
Food, sex and broken promises: Wanderlust episode 3 shows how brilliant Nick Payne's drama really is
Wanderlust episode 3 review
Few things in life are certain, and all that. But when a character in a BBC drama unequivocally promises something to her children, or husband, you can be pretty sure that the promise will be broken. It's just the way it is.
'There's nothing whatsoever to be worried about', Joy (Toni Collette) pleads to her three children over roast chicken. 'We don't foresee this affecting any of you in any practical sense.' 'This is not about love. This is sex.' Lastly, and most worryingly of all: 'We're not going to get divorced.'
We're three episodes deep into one of the most exciting and clever dramas of the autumn. Bodyguard and Vanity Fair have overshadowed Wanderlust because they're shiny and full of action – lots of guns and smoke and taught young bums – but they shouldn't have.
Nick Payne's exploration of desire in safe English suburbia may be slow but it's thoughtful and funny, honest and painful. The more we see of these people, the deeper their depths and more human their impulses. Wanderlust may ostensibly be about sex – and we see it all, from the first rip of the condom package to the unexpected orgasm – but the drama is actually about relationships.
Food is everything in this episode. Joy and Alan (Stephen Mackintosh) and the family are luxuriating in it. Moaning together over the marzipan hit of a cherry pie, filling themselves with more and more noodles on nights out with strange men. Or delicately replacing knives and forks when uncomfortable truths come to the surface and a coldness has settled over the pairing. But the problem with gorging yourself, is you eventually get full.
Where once extramarital sex bought Joy and Alan together, it seems that extramarital feelings are a different kettle of fish. Beware the statements made by Claire (Zwane Ashton). 'What I'm not interested in is fucking up someone's marriage. I'm definitely not interested in fucking up my job.... no histrionics, no psycho drama and no getting in the way of the work'. Oh dear, oh dear. Promises are made to be broken, after all.
'There's nothing whatsoever to be worried about', Joy (Toni Collette) pleads to her three children over roast chicken. 'We don't foresee this affecting any of you in any practical sense.' 'This is not about love. This is sex.' Lastly, and most worryingly of all: 'We're not going to get divorced.'
We're three episodes deep into one of the most exciting and clever dramas of the autumn. Bodyguard and Vanity Fair have overshadowed Wanderlust because they're shiny and full of action – lots of guns and smoke and taught young bums – but they shouldn't have.
Nick Payne's exploration of desire in safe English suburbia may be slow but it's thoughtful and funny, honest and painful. The more we see of these people, the deeper their depths and more human their impulses. Wanderlust may ostensibly be about sex – and we see it all, from the first rip of the condom package to the unexpected orgasm – but the drama is actually about relationships.
Food is everything in this episode. Joy and Alan (Stephen Mackintosh) and the family are luxuriating in it. Moaning together over the marzipan hit of a cherry pie, filling themselves with more and more noodles on nights out with strange men. Or delicately replacing knives and forks when uncomfortable truths come to the surface and a coldness has settled over the pairing. But the problem with gorging yourself, is you eventually get full.
Where once extramarital sex bought Joy and Alan together, it seems that extramarital feelings are a different kettle of fish. Beware the statements made by Claire (Zwane Ashton). 'What I'm not interested in is fucking up someone's marriage. I'm definitely not interested in fucking up my job.... no histrionics, no psycho drama and no getting in the way of the work'. Oh dear, oh dear. Promises are made to be broken, after all.
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| What | Wanderlust episode 3 review |
| Where | BBC One, BBC One | MAP |
| When |
On 18 Sep 18, 9:00 PM – 10:00 PM |
| Price | £n/a |
| Website |