This episode is another one which highlights the brutality of the setting, and the medicine at the time.
The episode is a month after the last one, the sailors from The Terror are settling into the Erebus. Goodsir has been learning the language of the local Inuktitut from Lady Silence, while everyone else is trying to survive.
The first scene is in the doctors medical area where he's quite casually cutting off someone's frost bite blackened toe which is then cauterized. The tool looks like a pruning sheer, and I'm not sure the poor guy got anything for the pain. He just whimpers when the toe falls unceremoniously into a bucket.
Not only does this highlight the difference between how we'd do it now, but also the difference between the two medical professionals. The times we've seen Goodsir with men he's kind, gives assurances and tries to reduce the trauma as much as possible. The times we've seen Stanley he is apathetic at best, and a few times outright cruel. He never says a word to a guy he's removing toes from and is instead carrying on a conversation with someone else.
The captain of the Erebus is tired of having Lady Silence on his ship and orders her back to The Terror. Goodsir and a few others, including Mr.Hornby, make their way across the ice to The Terror. Hornby dies during the crossing. Goodsir's not sure what cause of death was but heart attack is suspected.
Captain Cozier takes the news stoically and moves on to discussion of alcohol stores. He's running low on whisky. And it's clear it's a real problem as he's very obviously a functioning alcoholic.
Cozier, several others, and Blankey(whose been a solid, reliable character so far) sit down with Lady Silence. Cozier demands information on the creature that's been killing men. Tearing them apart. That dumped Sir John's body down the same whole they dumped her father's body. We learn it's name, Tuunbaq is named, and revealed to be a spirit wearing the shape of an animal.
Goodsir tries to convince Captain Cozier to have a gentler hand, but he refuses. When he pushes and demands how do we kill it, Lady Silence has some absolutely outstanding lines, that end with her asking him "why do you want to die?"
He gets enraged, tells her to leave his ship. Goodsir and Blankey object, and Cozier orders Blankey to survey the ice for an hour. A brutal punishment given that earlier it was said no one should be above deck for more than half an hour due to the deadly temperatures.
The creature attacks, and Blankey ends up on the rigging, then a part of the mast, as the beast chases him. Despite the fear, pain and horror he's must have been feeling he has the prescence of mind to throw a burning oil lamp at the creature. This brilliant, clutch move shows everyone on deck where the creature is. With well co-ordinated movements the crew on the deck gets a 6 pound cannon aimed at the beast, and they successfully hit it. Causing it to run off leaving a trail of blood.
Blankely is horrifically injured, between the creature slashing his leg, a fall, and being exposed to the cold his leg is in horrific condition. Which gets to the next scene of medical horror. The leg is amputated with a bone saw, the only pain management for this agonizing procedure is a bit of cocain and whiskey. Whiskey he implores Cozier to share with the men. Which he does. The show doens't focus on the gore. We only hear the sound of the saw, and the expression on the poor guys face, and Cozier's guilt. After all without his drunken anger, his friend wouldn't have been above deck and wouldn't have been so terribly injured.
The next bit, Cozier talks to his lieutenants and tells them he'll need his help. That he will be sick for a while. That they must not give him alcohol no matter how he begs for it. He knows he's going to go into a nasty withdrawal as he sobers up. He hands over his gun as well, fearing what he might do.
The men he trusts respond with assurances that they'll take care of the ships, and of him.
The final scene shows Goodsir giving the monkey Jocko(the pet of the late Sir John) rations from a can. Which I'm assuming he's doing in order to test his theory that the rations have lead poisoning.
In short, another great episode, more chilling evidence of just how brutal the setting is. The monster really isn't needed for the crew to die. Enough perish from the elements, and more suffer from illness due to the tainted goods. Some men are shaken with mentions of hearing things in the chamber of the dead.With one man callously pointing out that it's not the dead, but rats trying to get through the layers of canvas to eat the corpses. Which wouldn't make me feel a whole let better either.
I'm also astounded at how well the creators of the show managed to make it feel cold. I was watching while in a room warm enough to make me sweat and kept expecting there to be snow.
Rating: 90/100
Originally posted through scrobble.life/tv.
"Brrrr."
