Great Expectations episode 4

With reaching the midway for this series. It has emerged as a much more dramatic show.

It could be my resignation to the departure from the story of Pip, Or perhaps it is the widening of the story, with cancellation and subterfuge. Pip is showing him calculation skills as he negotiates a profit on shipping forecasts and his network of contacts in the working world.

Estella immediately seems to get more story and is only relegated to fantasies about Pip as a character to liberate her. This is a regressive sentiment, given what we have seen so far.

Again, Jaggers, while showing a great range of charisma and power, still seems a stern teacher, ostensibly teaching Pip o use his anger and his love while enjoying sadism that compels on screen but does leave a detraction to the story feel disengaged from the characters as a whole.

The show is rich and sumptuous in detail and continues to be fantastic window dressing in the box. 

The conversation between Estella dn, Drummond and Pip, though, is an excellent portrayal of power dynamics between class and gender in such a weird interplay it brings back the reasons to watch this show.

As we watch smaller schemes unravel with more detail. We see MAgwitch, which throws a massive spanner and should give some curiosity as to who Pip’s patron is. However, it’s such a small piece of the puzzle that it takes much work to gain interest. 

The cliche discussion between Estella and the old town also adds little to her. With every scene, she is even more of a cypher in her quest for freedom.

This is the strongest episode by far. Sadly I fear it may be too late; if this had been episode 2, I would be more pleasant toward the ending. But this 4! 4!