Episode 121: Good Omens TV Show, Season 2, Chapter 5. Recap and discussion.
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Note: Transcripts are produced with Whisper AI and PyAnnote – we don’t have time to edit them extensively, so both wording and speaker labelling will be inaccurate in parts.
0:00:00
I don’t normally have coffee this late. Apparently it makes me hopeful. So my entertainment this week, because I’ve just been desperate to watch the last episode of Good Omens and haven’t, is I’ve been watching YouTube compilations of like David Tennant and Michael Sheen being the opposite of their actual characters in real life. Yeah, I need to watch the I know it’s not quite real life, but I need to watch the most recent series of Staged as well. I haven’t actually watched it yet. I love Staged. Some clips that came up. But yeah, turns out. Oh, wow. Have you seen like Michael Sheen in his young days? Oh, my God, right. He’s like, what a dashing smile. I mean, he’s still got like a good smile, but like he had like a maybe he still does when he’s not playing like a goody two shoes. Like a wicked smile,
0:00:48
you know?
0:00:49
Yeah. I mean, I first became aware of Michael Sheen in the Twilight movies, which is weirdly kind of also how we became friends with Neil Gaiman.
0:00:59
Oh, yeah.
0:01:00
Yeah. I can’t remember all of the context of the story now, but they ended up interacting because Neil Gaiman was defending like stuff like Twilight that is written for young adults. And Michael Sheen was like, yeah, obviously, I think it’s cool. I was in it because my daughters really wanted me to be and they loved that I was in it. And yeah, you know what? It was really fun. I was playing a super hammy villain.
0:01:23
Excellent.
0:01:24
And he is very funny in them because he is playing a super hammy villain with like a full on widow’s peak and slicked back hair. Oh, cute. Yeah, this must be the clips I saw must have been much earlier, I think.
0:01:34
Yeah. Yeah.
0:01:36
I don’t remember when Twilight came out. It came out after I was the ideal age for it. Yeah, because I was about the right age for the books. Like I read them because my friends
0:01:46
were reading them. But I am a year younger than you.
0:01:51
Yeah, I think literally that must be the year that divides us there because if everyone had been reading it at school, I would have read it.
0:01:58
Yeah.
0:01:59
I wasn’t like a not like other girls girl for sure. But it just never… Turned out I really fucking was. Just not when it came to that vampire romance. No, you’re not like you’re not a not like other girls being you are. Yes, I’m quite like girls in some way, but not a girl. Yeah, but that’s a bit of a mouthful.
0:02:20
It is. Yeah, no, that’s fair.
0:02:22
As the seamstress said to the bishop.
0:02:24
Sorry.
0:02:26
As the seamstress said to the angel. How is your stone carving going?
0:02:31
Better now I got a book. Oh good.
0:02:34
I just need to find a source of stone now. I need to work out where it because we live in the worst place for that. I’m not going to come across any random bits of sandstone here.
0:02:44
Nope.
0:02:45
Flint or clay, take your pick.
0:02:47
I imagine Flint not great for stone carving.
0:02:50
No, and clay is not really stone carving. It’s just drawing in the mud, isn’t it?
0:02:55
I mean fun in the same way.
0:02:57
Yeah, definitely. But not very hard wearing. You know full well if I had room for a kiln, I would have got really into pottery by now.
0:03:03
Oh, yeah, that’s what drawing in clay.
0:03:06
Pottery.
0:03:07
Good. Well done.
0:03:08
We were talking about pottery earlier today. We were talking about pottery earlier today. I just forgot it was made out of clay. It was in the context of people drama rather than mineral drama. Mineral drama is infinitely preferable. Yeah, it is. Well, if I hear of anyone getting rid of vast amounts of carvable stone, I will let you know. Oh, God, I forgot to tell you. Sorry, subject change. I had a very weird nostalgia trip last Sunday.
0:03:33
Oh, do tell.
0:03:34
So I dropped a bookcase off you and took some stuff from you to take to the charity shop, which I took and it was closed. Thank you for housing my clothes for a week. No, well, we went back on the Sunday. And the thing is that the place where this charity shop is used to be a curtain fabric shop that my mother worked in. And therefore I grew up in the back rooms of and the poor woman working. She said, we don’t take donations on Sundays. And I explained that we tried to come the day before and had a car full of clothes. And she very nicely said, yes, all right, we’ll take them. And I was very apologetic. And she got me to bring them straight into the back room. So I walked into these back offices I basically grew
0:04:10
up in. Oh, yeah.
0:04:12
But the thing is, we’d also decided to go for a walk and specifically go for a walk at Edgeshall Heath because I haven’t been over there for ages.
0:04:18
Oh, lovely.
0:04:19
But of course, haven’t been that way in ages. The road literally takes you past the house I grew up in. So you end up stopping and driving around the little cul-de-sac I grew up in and then going and walking around Edgeshall Heath. And coming back, we went through the Coney Weston and the pub that I pretty much grew up in.
0:04:37
Oh, lovely.
0:04:37
So we ended up stopping at the pub and they have not changed the carpet in 20 years since I was last there. So it even smelled the same.
0:04:46
Oh, wow. Which was…
0:04:48
Isn’t that a thing? One of those very, very surreal, you know, you go somewhere you haven’t seen as a kid and like, oh my god, it looks tiny now. It was also huge. This was a very specific flavour of that of I’ve never been able to see over this bar before.
0:05:03
Ah, was it nice though?
0:05:04
Oh, it was lovely.
0:05:05
Yeah, good.
0:05:06
It was a fun little bit of nostalgia.
0:05:08
I do like Neshell Heath.
0:05:10
It’s a very pretty place to go and walk. And we saw horses. Or they’re ponies, technically. They’re Exmoor ponies.
0:05:17
Ex…
0:05:18
Moor? Exmoor ponies. So they used to be moor ponies? No, no. Exmoor. One word. Not they used to be moor ponies and now they’re just… They got kidnapped and put on Neshell Heath for no good reason.
0:05:31
Fuck this is a heath, not a moor. Fuck am I doing here?
0:05:35
Why do you know the difference? You’re a horse. Just because I’m a horse doesn’t mean I can’t be educated about the subtleties of biomes.
0:05:42
So…
0:05:43
We are two rational, well adjusted human beings who are absolutely capable of recording a podcast.
0:05:48
So, do you want to make a podcast?
0:05:51
I admire your optimism. So yes, let’s make a podcast.
Intro
0:06:00
Hello, and welcome to The Two Shall Make You Fret, a podcast in which we’re usually reading and recapping every book from Terry Pratchett’s Discord series on time and chronological order, but we’ve taken a break from that to talk about Good Omens season two. I’m Hagen. And I’m Carroll. And today we’re talking about Good Omens season two, episode five, The Ball.
0:06:17
The penultimate episode.
0:06:19
The penultimate, which means we can nearly watch the finale.
0:06:22
Oh, thank fuck.
0:06:24
I should say actually, chapter five. We’ve been saying episode all this season,
0:06:27
but they’re all called chapter. Oh, are they?
0:06:30
On Amazon Prime. Yeah.
0:06:31
Well, whatever. Not a major issue. Fine. Fine, Neil, whatever you want.
JOANNA
Now on spoilers before we crack on. We are doing spoiler free discussion for Good Omens season two. So this episode will not contain any spoilers past episode five. It will, however, contain spoilers for Good Omens season one, the book Good Omens, but it will not contain any major spoilers for the Discworld series. So if you are just joining us for Good Omens, you’re new to Discworld and want to give it a go, you can come on the journey with us safely. This will be a very weird place to start your journey with us. Episode five, season two of Good Omens, which is not what our show is about. But welcome anyway. Welcome on. Welcome all. Yes, come on. Come on.
0:07:14
Have we got anything to follow up on?
0:07:16
If we do, I didn’t look. I’m sorry. I’ve worked right up until we started this today.
JOANNA
I had a quick look. I don’t think we’ve got anything to follow up on. Francine, do you want to tell us what happened previously on Good Omens?
FRANCINE
Certainly. Previously on Good Omens. Aziraphale races north at 30 miles an hour, while Crowley babysits the affable gentleman previously known as Gabriel. Speaking of the Archangel, Aziraphale finds out Gabriel’s a representative of the Masons and visits his Masonry representation. In the graveyard where Angel and Demon once meddled in the affairs of resurrectionists, Aziraphale does a favour for some humans once more. On his way home, he’s accosted by Shax, who also pays a visit to Crowley. Nina and Maggie fail to Vavavoom, and after a magical flashback, Aziraphale makes it home. Shax and Beelzebub are planning an attack, and our Angel starts planning a party. I’m not doing the flashbacks in the summary because it’s not important to the plot so much.
0:08:14
It might be, but I’m not doing it.
0:08:17
Representative of the Masons’ Masonic representation, by the way. Oh, Masonry representation, that was genius.
0:08:23
Oh, thank you.
0:08:26
Okay, so, episode five, The Ball. Big thoughts, overall thoughts, what do you think?
0:08:30
I liked it.
0:08:31
I liked the slightly more rapid switching of plots until it all came together again. Like, right near the end, I guess it all came together again, but because we’re not doing the little flashbacks, the big flashbacks, I mean. And kind of get that sense of momentum and things speeding up towards the climax of the episode. Yeah, the pacing’s better here. There’s now like a sense of urgency that I thought was kind of lacking in the last couple of episodes. Yeah, no, I’m enjoying, I really enjoyed this one. I think this is probably my favourite of the season so far. Have you looked at the bonus material? I looked at some of it, not all of it. The costume concept art, I was thinking was particularly you. I will be treating myself to a little scroll through later.
0:09:15
Oh, okay, little scroll.
0:09:16
Little scroll. Creaky scroll through some concept art. It’s nice, anyway.
0:09:20
Yeah, I only had very brief scrolls.
0:09:21
We haven’t watched the videos yet. That’ll be fun. I did have a quick look at the deleted scenes, which if you haven’t yet, listeners, do check out, especially Rob running away from some demons.
0:09:32
Okay. It’s nice to see.
0:09:34
I was surprised he didn’t get like a bigger cameo in this somewhere. Yeah, must have been cut for time. Yeah, he’s probably happier to have no cameo than when he was appearing as an extra in Color of Magic and had to lie on the ground with a sword through him for a very long time.
0:09:50
Yeah. Which is a story he does like to tell.
0:09:53
Anyway, but we’re not talking about Discworld, we’re talking about Good Omens, aren’t we?
0:09:56
Yeah. So…
0:09:57
Spoilers, someone’s on the floor with a sword through them. Spoilers for Discworld, that might happen more than once.
0:10:04
So where are we?
Chapter 5: The Ball
0:10:05
We are opening with Shax having a little stomp through hell, doing the little Shax walk. I love the little Shax walk.
0:10:12
The little Shax shuffle.
0:10:14
And she goes to Furfur to requisition her legion of 10,000 demons, which she finds quite funny. Little Doctor Evil moment there. Absolutely. Where are the demons, do we think? See, I’ve got a feeling A, there’s not that many demons to begin with. Like, maybe there’s like only 10,000 total. And B, if you think like Shax is kind of the London representative, they must be all around the world just doing their evil little jobs. They can’t get called back every time someone needs a legion. Yeah, but she must have a really distorted idea of how many exist. Quite possibly, or she’s just not thought… I mean, maybe the majority of demons have a distorted idea about it. Well, that’s a good point. Yeah, you’d kind of need the inflated confidence, wouldn’t you, for the… And I doubt they all gather in one place that often. Yeah, that would be noisy and bad. And they probably smell unpleasant. But we’ve negotiated down to 70. We’ve negotiated down to 70, but meanwhile up in the round world, Aziraphale’s off to invite the local traders to the monthly meeting. I’ve been looking forward to this. From the moment Aziraphale said the word cotillion, I’ve been looking forward to this.
0:11:24
He’s having a smile.
0:11:27
And Crowley wants to watch.
0:11:29
Of course.
0:11:30
So first they go to the music shop, Arnold’s, and Aziraphale promises Mr Arnold a 1965 Doctor Who annual in exchange for his attendance at avec harpsichord.
0:11:40
Avec harpsichord.
0:11:42
Avec harpsichord. So Mr Arnold is played by Rich Keeble, who’s one of those rich actors that’s been in lots of odd episodes of comedy stuff. I was gonna say, I don’t know where I know him from, but I know him from things. I think like recently, including Ted Lasso and Ghosts, and I think that’s probably where I’m most likely to recognise him from. He’s also been… He’s also a voice actor. He’s done a lot of video games. He was the mouth of Sauron in the new Gollum game.
0:12:07
Well. So well done him. Okay.
0:12:11
The name as well, Mr Arnold and the shop being called Arnold’s, is a reference to David Arnold, the composer for the series. Oh, nice. Yeah, because it’s music. Yeah, good.
0:12:20
Like that.
0:12:21
But yeah, I like this whole thing of Aziraphale giving a book away to get someone to come to this thing, and it’s like a payoff for that, him refusing to sell books, jokes. It makes it slightly less tired.
0:12:33
Yeah.
0:12:34
Yeah, we really built up what a big deal that was. Yeah, it still got tired, but at least we’ve got some payoff for it. Yeah, he really wants that party to go well.
0:12:44
Bless him.
0:12:45
So yeah, Back in Hell, Shax Bargains.
0:12:47
You can’t have a party without a harpsichord. Sorry.
0:12:50
Never have a party without a harpsichord. I never go anywhere without one.
0:12:54
My little travel harpsichord.
0:12:56
And I’ve got a lovely little harpsichord on the coast for the summer, you know. Little harpsichordette.
0:13:03
In the country. Sorry. I’ll start making jokes about virginals,
0:13:08
and we don’t need me judiciously using the word ing. Sorry, there’s no Discord spoilers. There’s just a bunch of Discord in-jokes.
0:13:17
Oh, we’re insufferable.
0:13:18
Anyway, yeah, Back in Hell, Shax bargains down to 70 demons with Furfur. I love Furfur in this scene, just because it’s that kind of really annoying bureaucracy. It’s like, it’s not so much that he’s intentionally getting in her way. He’s just really enjoying saying no.
0:13:34
Yeah, and he’s not going to try and help.
0:13:37
I really enjoyed the screen aesthetics. They’re horrible to look at, but very pleasing screen.
0:13:43
Oh, yeah, I did.
0:13:45
Not going to list everything from the trivia section on Amazon X-Ray, because you can just go look at it for yourself. But apparently that is based on the computer from Terry Gilliam’s movie, Brazil.
0:13:54
Oh, cool.
0:13:54
Or it’s like inspired by that, which is a nice detail.
0:13:57
Cool.
0:13:58
We all like a bit of Terry Gilliam. So yeah, next, Aziraphale heads to the magic shop to ask Mutt to attend the party. I found this magic shop scene less stressful to watch than last week’s.
0:14:10
There was less magic.
0:14:11
Yeah, there was less magic. Less objectionable magic shop owner. So Mutt just played… The dolls weren’t as creepy. The dolls weren’t as creepy. They were still creepy.
0:14:19
Yeah, but like the normal amount.
0:14:21
Dolls are inherently creepy.
0:14:23
Yeah, they can’t help it.
0:14:24
And I say this as someone who has a small doll of myself I keep on a shelf and proud display.
0:14:29
Oh, mini. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah.
0:14:32
Yeah, so Mutt’s already played by Jeff Alexander. And we’ll talk about Mutt’s spouse in a few scenes, but I do like the fact that it’s just automatically spouse and then automatically they them as well.
0:14:42
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
0:14:43
Like just really natural use of gender neutral terms. Like we haven’t really talked about it in depth, but this whole season has just been very casually queer and that brings me a lot of joy.
0:14:54
Yeah, yeah.
0:14:55
He’s not needing to like hammer the point in, which is much nicer for just general flow. And also for, you know, saying, you know, no, it’s normal.
0:15:07
Yeah.
0:15:08
People exist.
0:15:09
They do. Isn’t that nice?
0:15:12
The bit from the scene, I’m going to say from the Amazon X-ray, because it’s very relevant to our listeners, is the SW… Erdnase, whatever I can’t remember.
0:15:22
Erdnase. Thank you.
0:15:24
Sorry, is a real person, a real author and everyone thinks his name is probably… Something Andrews. Something Andrews, because he just spelt his name backwards. And I’m putting that in because Pratchett likes to make jokes about people not putting much effort into their co-names by just spelling their own name backwards. So yes, this book from Erdnase gets much promised attendance, and he’ll be bringing his spouse. And then in the street, Mrs. Cheng agrees to attend. And this is great fun fact, and I’m from Neil Gaiman on Twitter. So Michael Sheen actually learned how to have this conversation properly in Mandarin for the sake of filming this scene, just like he did with the Japanese in the first season. But like a couple scenes later, he speaks very bad French.
0:16:11
Yes.
0:16:12
Michael Sheen is actually fluent in French and found it very difficult to do the bad French. Which I think is why his accent is so good, even though his French isn’t very good.
0:16:23
Yeah.
0:16:23
There was, I looked up, by the way, he said he had lessons with Mr. Rossignol, something like that, in 1760. And there was a prominent Rossignol in the late 1700s, but I think this would be a bit early for him. But maybe there was another. But anyway, it’s nice because Césaire Ruffel would have been hanging out in France around that time. We know that because callback.
0:16:48
Yeah, revolution.
0:16:50
Almost beheaded.
0:16:51
Yeah.
0:16:52
Yeah, so then Shax addresses her 70 skeptic demons who have some questions. Shax’s outfit, her invading earth, dramatic, the black hair, the big feathers, I like it. It’s very. It is very. It is the most outfit. It is definitely outfit. I’m saying that in a very good outfit episode. And I love the awkward microphone struggle.
0:17:21
Yeah.
0:17:22
Because we’ve all been there and it’s sort of just the absolute slight limp sadness of attempting to do this dramatic address in this big, echoing, miserable warehouse.
0:17:33
Yeah.
0:17:34
Which is the most open space I think we’ve seen in Hell so far.
0:17:38
Yeah, definitely, actually.
0:17:39
And somehow it’s still just as upsetting. Yeah, absolutely. So the demon asking all the questions, although he never gets addressed by name, he is credited as Eric, which I thought was a nice detail.
0:17:49
Oh, yeah.
0:17:50
Assuming it might be a reference to another Eric. Played by Paul Adeyefa and he was also the disposable demons in season one.
0:17:58
Yeah, he’s got the bunny ears.
0:18:00
Yeah, he just reconstitutes, I guess.
0:18:02
Yeah.
0:18:03
I will say I’m calling them disposable demons. That is how they were credited.
0:18:07
Oh, okay.
0:18:08
Or he was credited. I’m sorry, I was about to get offended on the part of demons, but. I know, but it’s nice to establish I’m not calling them disposable.
0:18:17
Okay.
0:18:18
He’s also he was very good in the 2019 National Theatre Live Midsummer Night’s Dream,
0:18:23
which is available on the internet. Highly recommend a watch.
0:18:27
So yeah, so then Aziraphale uses his incredible French to extend an invite to Justine, the local
0:18:34
restauranteur.
0:18:36
So Justine played by Anna Marianne, who hasn’t done much before this. So this is very cool.
0:18:40
I liked her. I liked her haircut.
0:18:43
She did a very good French person who’s not going to bother trying to speak your bad French.
0:18:48
Yes.
0:18:50
And they’re very clear. I’ve lived here 10 years. Then Aziraphale’s wondering what happened to the pen of his aunt’s gardener.
0:19:00
Il y a un grand mi-don le bidet.
0:19:02
Il y a un grand mi-don le bidet. Such useful French that we know. So yeah, Shax makes a lot of promises to her not quite early. They’re scared of the angels. They do not want to get permanently discorporated, which I thought was a fun detail.
0:19:16
Yeah.
0:19:17
Interesting that one would be damned to all eternity, and yet the idea of not existing is worse.
0:19:24
Yeah.
0:19:25
Or they do exist, but in a void, right? Yeah, they discorporated just like they never existed. Even so, it sounds more peaceful.
0:19:34
The void.
0:19:34
You’d think. I’d quite happily be discorporated and sent to a void.
0:19:38
But sadly, here we are.
0:19:41
No one ever gives you the option. No one ever discorporates me and puts me in a void. We’re just gonna have to start a fight with heaven. Cool, all right. But after the podcast, sorry.
0:19:50
Oh, okay. Okay, cool. Where are we?
0:19:53
So yeah, after the French criticism, Aziraphale extends his invite to Nina, who has been enjoying the show between Aziraphale and Crowley. So Aziraphale heads back to the shop, and Nina asks Crowley about his relationship to Aziraphale.
0:20:09
Crowley does.
0:20:10
All kinds of stuttering. I think this is the episode of this season where I really start feeling invested in Crowley and Aziraphale’s relationship again, because I’ve kind of not been as much as the season’s gone on, just because I think we’ve spent so much time in the past.
0:20:26
Yes.
0:20:28
I’m not sure I quite agree, but I remember you saying. I’m not invested, but I’m more excited about the two of them after this. Him following Aziraphale around like a slightly annoyed spouse is very funny.
0:20:44
It is.
0:20:44
It’s brilliant. I did, it’s when Nina is talking to him about Aziraphale, and she says, other people’s love lives are more interesting to us than our own. And then Crowley has the sort of thought about Aziraphale. Obviously Aziraphale’s been taking far more interest in someone else’s love life.
0:21:02
Hmm.
0:21:05
I think before I was part of the reason I was struggling to invest, because it didn’t seem like they were super invested in each other. They’ve been like apart for so much of the season.
0:21:13
Yeah.
0:21:14
And not in like an interesting pining for each other way, just in a, we’re off doing our own thing and we’re kind of at cross purposes. True, but I think maybe that was just so it didn’t conflict too much with what we were learning about the relationship and the flashbacks.
0:21:28
True.
0:21:28
Like, I don’t know about you, but I’m very easily emotionally confused. I think it just wasn’t something I was- It wasn’t your brand of investment. Yeah, it wasn’t my brand of investment. People enjoy different ways of reading or viewing romances.
0:21:43
Yeah, yeah.
0:21:44
But now Crowley’s like thinking about their relationship in the context of Aziraphale being focused more on Maggie and Nina, I care a lot more.
0:21:51
Yeah.
0:21:52
And realising that people see them as a couple. Yeah, which I don’t think he’s thought about before. Whereas Aziraphale clearly has, for reference, please see the featured expression of last week’s episode.
0:22:06
Yeah, that was a good phrase.
0:22:09
Back in Hell, masks will be provided, which I thought was just a nice, oh hey, we have that. There’s an issue with the big transporter, the pedantic demon gets a shock, and the rest of the Legion will be taking the stairs. So then we go back to the restaurant and Crowley’s sat there having his bottle of wine.
0:22:29
Beautifully.
0:22:31
Very loosely sat with his bottle of wine and slightly legs akimbo sitting in a way I think only David Tennant can sit.
0:22:38
I know, it is.
0:22:40
Imagine having that much limb and being able to sit well.
0:22:46
It’s a gift.
0:22:47
Very jealous. So Aziraphale suggests that Crowley comes back to the shop, but Crowley isn’t comfortable being under the same roof as Gabriel. Aziraphale suggests that Crowley and Jim should chat, and then Crowley suddenly agrees, but he’s very much bringing his wine. So to speak. Yeah, and this is what I find interesting, because we know that for Crowley, being drunk is a choice. So the angel and the demon can sober up whenever they feel like it. And so he has decided to go in there with his ambitions lowered. Which is a good choice if you’re trying to be a dick. Yeah, and if I think Crowley knows deep down that he has the tendency to be nice, maybe.
0:23:32
No one will believe you.
0:23:36
And I think the wine, he knows he needs to be a dick to Gabriel, and the wine is the only way he can do that quite as well, I think. Yeah, and even so he can’t quite overcome that loss. I’m also trying to have this serious conversation, but you have put a giant Fight Club meme in the plan, and I’m getting very distracted by Ed Norton’s face. That’s your own fault, because one of the bullet points here is Aziraphale’s distinct lack of concern. And obviously, that made me think of the I am Jacks total lack of whatever meme, and total lack of surprise meme, and I had to quickly make… I had so few minutes to do my notes, and yet I spent two of them doing that. And that’s why you’re one of my favourite people and an incredible person to podcast with.
0:24:20
Oh, thank you. But not very good at show notes.
0:24:24
So anyway, Aziraphale just doesn’t seem very concerned about the amnesiac archangel, compared to Crowley. And we’re building up to a bit of why Crowley is so much more uncomfortable with Gabriel. And I’ll get to that when we talk about the Crowley and Gabriel conversation, which is like, by far my favourite whole scene of the episode. I think it was great. But it is… I think I’m finding Aziraphale frustrating this season.
0:24:53
He’s very much head in the sand. Yeah.
0:24:57
He’s very keen to follow the clues, but it’s a game. It’s fun.
0:25:00
Yeah.
0:25:02
I quite… like, not to get too ahead of ourselves in the episode, but I quite… I saw it reflected in the way he’s making everybody else act at the dance. It’s like he’s under his own spell. When Nina says, I know I’m upset. Why don’t I feel upset? Yeah. I feel like he’s kind of cast a glamour on himself this season. Maybe we’ll find that out. Or maybe he’s just head empty party today.
0:25:26
Yeah. He is in cotillion mode. Cotillion mode! Engage!
0:25:35
Pleats everywhere. Not pleats, what do I mean? Ruffles. Ruffles. Yes. Ruffles and bodices and bustles. Oh my. Before we get to Crowley confronting Jim, though, we have Nina, who’s cleaning the cafe and getting a final round of breakup texts from Lindsay. I really like the way they showed the messages in the scene, having them come up on the chalkboard and then her wiping them away.
0:25:59
Yeah, that was cool. That was a really clever detail.
0:26:02
He’s done his three, I think. Or maybe the… No, that episode with the papers, this is one. Maybe we’ll get another one. Possibly.
0:26:09
Or maybe I’ve missed one.
0:26:10
I don’t know if you spotted as well that there’s a C and an A and a heart together on the chalkboard. I didn’t. Oh, cute. So I’ve chosen to think that Nina is really shipping as a referral in Crowley. Oh, do you think she’s really into fan fiction? Yeah, 100%. She’s hoping that she can get them under an awning, if you know what I mean.
0:26:32
Ooh-wah.
0:26:33
Wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more, squire. There’s something I did notice, though. As the texts come up, you’ll hear them slightly being spoken at the same time. But the voice given to Lindsay, and I couldn’t see anything credited for that, but it is kind of a bit masculine. And I don’t know why, I just didn’t think of Lindsay as masculine. I assumed it was probably a girl. I did read Neil Gaiman somewhere saying that he had left Lindsay… Um, yeah, gender ambiguous on purpose, because Lindsay can be a boy or a girl’s name. Lindsay is a gender neutral name. And yeah, he was careful to leave the pronoun out so people can, yeah, whatever. Yeah, I thought it was meant to be gender ambiguous, too. That’s why I thought it was weird that there was a specifically masculine voice reading the text out. Yeah, makes sense. Because I thought it was meant to kind of be ambiguous. Well, some women have very masculine voices.
0:27:31
True, true, true.
0:27:33
Shouldn’t make assumptions.
0:27:35
Um, awning.
0:27:38
I’m trying to figure out how to pronounce that. And like the way that like people go in and find girly.
0:27:45
Awning, yeah, but awning. Yeah, right. There’s something there. Yeah.
0:27:49
A-W-W-W-hy-f-en-N-I-N-G. I’m glad we’ve established that. I put it in the plan now.
0:28:01
Cool, cool. I’m glad that’s there. I think that might be the only time I’ve added a retrospective bullet point to the plan. Because really, I can watch you doing it.
0:28:09
I was waiting to see what was going to come. It’s like writing a to do list and then going, oh, I’m going to put the things I’ve already done on the list so I can check them all. All right, but doing that is like really satisfying.
0:28:19
It is, yeah, absolutely.
0:28:21
So yeah, Crowley goes in to have a chat with Jim.
0:28:25
A little chat. Just a, you know, word in his shell like. Word in his shell like.
0:28:31
Jim, who is playing with the light switch until Crowley does a quick let there be light.
0:28:36
Yep.
0:28:38
There’s something I wanted to point out, actually, and I really started to notice it in this scene, but on second watch, I kind of clocked it from the beginning. Because originally I thought it was just because it’s drunk Crowley, but it’s not.
0:28:49
He’s doing it right from the start. His accent has gone like,
0:28:54
and it goes further and further through the episode, more into this like kind of posher,
0:28:58
like that posh drawl. Yes.
0:29:03
Like it’s shifting to the point where by the end of the episode, he’s starting to sound a lot like Angel Crowley starting up the universe. Is that so? Is this what he’s fighting against subconsciously?
0:29:14
Yeah.
0:29:14
With this foray back into demonise, demonish behaviour. Yeah, I think I pointed out back in the first episode we did on Good Omen season two, that there seemed to be like this kind of accent difference between heaven and hell.
0:29:29
Yeah.
0:29:30
So yeah, Crowley possibly slipping back into his angelic voice a bit, I thought was interesting. So Crowley recalls, even though Jim can’t, stepping into the burning hellfire on Aziraphale’s behalf at the end of the last season. So that was a conversation. Yeah, it’s interesting because it was played so lightly in that episode. It wasn’t, it wasn’t. So we have like Jim trying to make amends by jumping out the window, and I have a lot of thoughts and feelings.
0:29:59
Like a normal healthy human.
0:30:01
The way Crowley and Aziraphale though are holding on to those memories of what happened at the end of season one, you know, Aziraphale as Crowley, taking a bath in the holy water and asking for a rubber duck. Us all being blessed with the image of David Tennant in a bath. Versus Crowley as Aziraphale stepping into the hellfire. For Aziraphale it was funny. Like Aziraphale as Crowley, of course, and of course those demons all wanted to kill Crowley because they’re evil demons. And so Aziraphale, like Crowley’s thing is that he is not like other demons.
0:30:30
Yes.
0:30:32
Whereas for Crowley, like in that position of stepping into the hellfire, he knew that Aziraphale had like until recently, really still looked up to his side as it were. So Aziraphale’s boss saying, shut your stupid mouth and die, is like traumatizing Crowley on his friend’s behalf almost. Yeah, he’s like, I did not realize what a fucking abusive situation you were still in.
0:30:56
Maybe. Yeah.
0:30:57
He knows somewhat because, you know, he was part of it and got cast down himself. But yeah, this is a new level. And I went back and actually watched that scene again of like Aziraphale stepping into the hellfire and then we find out afterwards it was Crowley. And it’s again, the delivery of I’m the Archangel fucking Gabriel sunshine.
0:31:20
Beautiful.
0:31:21
But Crowley as Aziraphale is trying to get them to reconsider. And he does look genuinely really uncomfortable in a way that Aziraphale wasn’t when he was getting into the holy water.
0:31:32
Yes.
0:31:34
You know, he genuinely says, is there not another way? Could we not talk about this?
0:31:39
Yes.
0:31:40
And I know obviously some of that was in there because it hasn’t been revealed that they’re each other at the time. So yeah, and Aziraphale would be less blasé about.
0:31:49
Yeah.
0:31:50
Well, not that Crowley would be. I don’t know how Crowley would be about his death, but I’m sure he wouldn’t want to embarrass himself by pleading at a demon. Yeah, he’s got a particular vibe. Whereas Aziraphale is the sort of person who would ask if we could be reasonable and talk about this. And looks upset as he steps into the fire in a way that like the Crowley Aziraphale doesn’t when he steps into the holy water. And I think it’s because of how they review their respective sides that Crowley is the one kind of carrying the trauma for both of them. Because for Aziraphale, like the side he’s kind of on, not so much he’s more of an independent agent after what happened in season one, but he’s still kind of on heaven’s side. He’s just not necessarily on the angel side.
0:32:31
Yes.
0:32:32
Like that’s still right to Aziraphale. Like good and right and nice and kind are all this one lump of thing. Whereas to Crowley, I think both of these sides, the heaven and hell, are all as bad as each other. And he wants no part in it. He overall sees the whole system is just too flawed. And Aziraphale doesn’t look at it in quite the same way, which is why he keeps applying his definition of nice and good to Crowley, whether Crowley likes it or not.
0:33:00
Yeah.
0:33:02
See, he is aware of what heaven tried to do to him. But it’s just not experiencing it. Yeah, he hasn’t had to face it directly. Yeah, it’s a lot easier to play it off.
0:33:14
And kind of put it…
0:33:15
I’m sure if it was me, I’d have been able to persuade them out of it.
0:33:18
Yeah, yeah.
0:33:20
Yeah, anything that doesn’t sort of go as well for Crowley or that Crowley doesn’t see the same way as Aziraphale, Aziraphale just puts down to, oh, well, you’re a demon.
0:33:32
It reminded me a lot of…
0:33:34
It’s this idea of indoctrination. And obviously, because I grew up going to Catholic school and I was around a lot of people who were completely bought into it and their response to everything would be sort of eventually, it would be when I was, you know, dickhead argumentative atheist was, well, you just have to have faith. And, you know, I would be repeatedly going, but what if I don’t?
0:33:56
And why?
0:33:56
And eventually that’s how I figured out I didn’t really believe in God.
0:33:59
Yeah.
0:34:00
And Aziraphale really reminds me of that. Like it comes back to, well, you just have to have faith.
0:34:06
Good and yellow Bentleys. Yes. Yeah.
0:34:10
I think the thing is a lot of the time he’s proving himself right in a way, because if you’re nice to people and you’re nice to your little car, they like you. You are treated nicely. Good things happen if you are a pleasant person to be around. But he just so happens that that aligns with his idea of heaven.
0:34:31
Yeah.
0:34:32
And he comes from a base state of, I think, wanting to be liked in a way where I don’t think Crowley ever did. If you look at like the angel Crowley we see starting up the universe,
0:34:42
he doesn’t care that Aziraphale’s impressed.
0:34:45
He’s excited about what he’s made.
0:34:47
I don’t think he is.
0:34:48
His is less, I want to be liked and treated nicely and more like, I want to do stuff and be good at things.
0:34:55
Yeah.
0:34:56
And good as in like talented as much as morally good.
0:35:00
Yeah.
0:35:00
But he still does have that core of,
0:35:03
I’m not going to make someone walk out the fucking window. Yeah. Yeah.
0:35:07
Even if I’m really good at it. Yeah. So Crowley stops Jim from climbing out of the window. I’ve decided at this point that Jim’s faking it.
0:35:15
This was the scene. Ah, see, I’m still not there.
0:35:20
I still think there’s something genuine. Okay. I don’t know what it was exactly, but I just, something about the scene, I was like,
0:35:28
nah, I’ll buy it anymore.
0:35:30
It was just this scene. Just this scene. I didn’t think, didn’t really think at all until this. But yeah, I couldn’t tell you why. I think he knows more than he’s letting on, but I don’t think he’s totally faking it.
0:35:41
Okay. We’ll see. We’ll see real soon. Oh, we can finally fucking watch it. God, I’ve never done this much delayed gratification.
0:35:49
Listeners, please appreciate the lengths we’ve gone to here to be able to wildly speculate
0:35:55
without faking it. Yeah.
0:35:58
I am really glad we’ve done it this way because I love mystery book shows and I love wild speculation. I do wish this had been a weekly release rather than a binge drop so we could have kind of all gone on the journey together. Yeah, no, exactly. I understand why they do it, but it would have been cool to, you know, been on Discord
0:36:16
and Twitter and all sorts.
0:36:20
Yeah, I feel like we’re going to have a big sort of where our speculation wasn’t right next week and possibly also a look at the wild fan theories that have come out since the show, since the season ended.
0:36:30
Yeah, definitely.
0:36:31
Although even with weekly releases, when it’s like a mystery show like this, a lot of people are much cleverer than me and sometimes I’ll be like, oh, yeah.
0:36:42
Obviously.
0:36:44
A lot of shows I watch that are that kind of encourage that kind of speculation and are weekly releases are shows I also listen to podcasts about, which is why I’m really enjoying podcasting about this because I rarely get to be this side of the wild speculation. I listen to other people’s speculation and go, oh, yeah, that makes a lot more sense. This side of the wild speculation. Western movie. Anyway, Jim then explains this empty house metaphor and whether it’s fake or not, it’s a really great way of describing it. It is, yeah, especially when it’s like the memory palace as a whole thing.
0:37:18
Yeah.
0:37:20
Because it’s just like, tip it to anyone who didn’t watch too much Sherlock or didn’t know this from elsewhere. It’s a way of remembering things where you attach memories or parts of memories to items in this imaginary building you walk around. Yeah, it’s a visualisation tool.
0:37:38
Yeah, thank you.
0:37:41
Also to anyone who didn’t watch too much Sherlock, well done. How’s it like not needing so much therapy?
0:37:45
Not that we’ve been to therapy.
0:37:48
I know that’s another one of those shows where everyone decided retrospectively that they hated it, but I liked it.
0:37:55
I liked it.
0:37:55
And also it was a wild time to be on the Internet. Yeah, I wasn’t on Tumblr then, that probably helped.
0:38:01
I was on Tumblr then.
0:38:04
God, you think we’re getting weird and speculating here. Anyway, so Crowley tries to make Jim remember and he remembers that his memories were in a matchbox, but he took them out and put them in a box and brought them to the bookshop
0:38:17
and now they’re everywhere. And oh, I like this matchbox mystery. I like it.
0:38:24
I don’t know what it is, but I like it.
0:38:27
Yes.
0:38:30
It’s such a good small object to have it around. It’s good and curious and small, but it’s not as cliche as a key or a locket or something.
0:38:38
A little matchbox. Oh, a little matchbox from a pub.
0:38:42
That’s a nice bit of Arcana. The pub with a mysterious Arcana.
0:38:46
Arcana, thank you.
0:38:48
A pub with a mysterious jukebox. A matchbox and a jukebox. A matchbox and a jukebox, all the boxes, all the good pub boxes. And the dignity covering box. Surely next episode for the final pub related box, we’ll have one of those boxes of crisps.
0:39:04
You know?
0:39:04
Yes, big box of crisps.
0:39:06
50 packs of crisps in a box, yes. That’s it, that’s the set.
0:39:11
Um, oh yes, the classic pub boxes, juke, match, dignity covering and crisp. Also known as the four genders.
0:39:22
Four horsemen of the apocalypse.
0:39:25
The other thing that he says while he’s remembering is just this innocuous sentence out of nowhere that if it happens again, I can make it seem like it’s an institutional problem. Well, I heard it as if it happens again, people might think it’s an institutional problem. Oh, I’m sure he said I can make it seem like it’s an institutional problem. Okay, we’re gonna have to go back and check that because my theory is based on that.
0:39:49
Do you want to check now?
0:39:51
I kind of want to check now. The, oh, it’s a bit relevant. Neil Gaiman just posted that the closed captions have now been updated. Oh, cool, because yeah, I noticed there was definite, like, fur fur kept being referred to as faux faux.
0:40:03
Haha.
0:40:08
If it happens again, it will make it seem like it’s an institutional problem. It’s the closed captions. So in between. Yeah, so my theory, they didn’t want it to happen again, because it will seem like an institutional problem. Like it’ll say God will think they’re doing a shit job because another angels fucking memories have escaped or something. So that’s why they’re covering up the Gabriel thing. Also, I think the way it’s delivered is that we’re not 100% sure on what it is. Is it the memory thing? Or is it something else? Oh, yeah, no, we’re not sure. This is my speculation. Yeah, yeah, I like that. That’s a very good theory. But I also, I don’t really have a wild theory. But I feel like it, I just feel like it’s something else, because I want it to be something else, because I like it. That’s true. It’s a nice bit of ambiguity, because it’s, it’s delivered in this baffled way. Yeah, really can read it either way. So that’s cool.
0:40:58
I like that.
0:41:00
One theory is that it’s to do with Aziraphale and Crowley effectively defecting from their own size and becoming independent agents. Oh, yeah. So they’re sending, no, they didn’t send Gabriel down, but then they wanted to do something about it.
0:41:14
Something even though they’re meant to be immune. Yeah, yeah.
0:41:17
Or based on the fly buzzing around that, like, Gabriel and Beelzebub are working together.
0:41:22
Yeah. Oh, what if the memories are in the flies?
0:41:26
Well, I think the memories were, I feel like that was kind of establishing the memories were in that box he was carrying, and now they’re just out. But what if they were in the flies? That’s how the flies got in the memory in the fly. And I don’t think this is true, but what if?
0:41:38
No.
0:41:40
I mean, by the way, speaking of theories that are definitely wrong. My TV is fucky.
0:41:46
All my eyes are.
0:41:47
I noticed the same weird burning film effect while I was watching Taskmaster. Yeah, I think your TV’s fucked.
0:41:55
Update there.
0:41:56
Yeah, Jack doesn’t notice it, so it’s clearly not a big problem, but I was just looking so closely for anything.
0:42:02
Yeah. I’m going to say that’s your TV.
0:42:05
Anyway, so then we get a zoom in on the matchbox on this little podium in heaven. And then we see Michael and Uriel interviewing Muriel. There’s some confusion about an assistant bookseller because their minds are just sliding right off him. Yeah, I like that as a little moment of tension.
0:42:24
Like, are they gonna? No, they didn’t.
0:42:27
And I’ve seen that done something before where someone just can’t see or acknowledge something so clearly as the brain just slides off it. And I can’t remember what I’ve seen it. And I think it was it might have even been a Pratchett thing. I was going to say that’s very Pratchett-y. That sounds like soul music or something like that. Yeah, like a like this. It’s definitely in some of his books. I’m trying to think if you’ve seen it somewhere, it’ll be one of the adaptations. But oh, no, I just mean like the concept is familiar. It’s absolutely in a couple of his books. Yeah, it’s things like the fading into the foreground thing. But this this like no matter how much you blatantly wave it in someone’s face, they can’t remember it.
0:43:05
Yeah, no, it’s definitely in. Yeah.
0:43:08
And yes, I can’t remember exactly which one. Muriel mentions the secret meeting that she didn’t eavesdrop on because it was secret. And she’s a very polite angel.
0:43:16
Good. I love her. And she has a lovely skirt.
0:43:20
She does have a lovely skirt.
0:43:21
That was good.
0:43:22
That’s why I’ve got pleats on the brain.
0:43:23
I love all of Muriel’s outfits.
0:43:25
I’m not smooth brained, I’m pleated.
0:43:27
You’ve got a pleated brain today.
0:43:29
I forgot to say just the end of the Crowley and Gabriel scene. When that tension’s really built off, Crowley gives in and offers him a hot chocolate. And the score does a very nice little bit as Jim blinks when he agrees to it. And it’s a very nice little cheeky little moment.
0:43:50
Yeah.
0:43:52
So yes, Crowley delivers the cocoa but insists that he’s not nice.
0:43:55
Not nice.
0:43:56
Downstairs, Aziraphale is making space and Crowley is sent to fetch Maggie and Nina for the Wickbush Street Shopkeepers and Traders Association meeting. While Aziraphale lowers the chandelier.
0:44:10
He does.
0:44:11
In a little, I think, echo of the let there be light moment with Crowley there. As Crowley’s looking in through the window. As Aziraphale doesn’t say let there be light, but spreads his arms beautifully and brings down the chandelier in a grand. And the piano’s doing some beautiful stuff in the score at that moment.
0:44:30
It’s just a beautiful little bit. It is. I loved it.
0:44:34
Crowley looking in from the grim stream.
0:44:36
Yeah. Yeah.
0:44:38
So the guests begin to arrive for the Wickbush Street Shopkeepers. Traders Association monthly meeting.
0:44:42
It’s time for the party.
0:44:44
It’s time for the party. Mrs. Sandwich is vague and Mr. Brown is upset about the seats. Mrs. Sandwich, when Aziraphale asks what her girls do, she says stand on their own two feet like the government says. Is that like a reference to some specific horrible thing? Because our politicians say so many horrible things I lose track. Oh, I tried to look it up. But I might have been going down the wrong track now you say that. So I was trying to look if there was some old law that said that like there was a loophole that you could be a sex worker if you didn’t go to bed or something like that. And then I started looking into like the top and the upright thing.
0:45:22
And yeah, yeah, there we go.
0:45:24
Which is a type of jam donut.
0:45:25
Yes. Don’t worry.
0:45:29
But yeah, so I don’t know is the answer to that. Listeners, answers on an explicit postcard. Not too explicit. Not too explicit. Tastefully.
0:45:39
Is that a thing?
0:45:40
Something I noticed, Mrs. Sandwich’s outfit changes when she walks in.
0:45:45
Oh, yeah.
0:45:47
And I really like that part of this regency, this spell, whatever it is, Aziraphale has done to make the cotillion work and make them all a bit Pride and Prejudice, has put them all into their nicest outfits, but they’re not all in regency outfits. They’re all in like their version of their nicest outfits. Now Nina doesn’t change her outfit, does she? I think it changes like very subtly, but it’s subtle. Maggie, it’s just her shirt changes into like a nice shirt. And Maggie is the sort of one who’d wear like a nice shirt with jeans.
0:46:16
Yeah, yeah. Okay.
0:46:18
And Mrs. Sandwich has this gorgeous like sequined jumpsuit
0:46:21
and a bit of a hair thing going on, which I love.
0:46:24
Yes, the idea is, well, Aziraphale’s being a very good host. He’s making everybody happy.
0:46:29
Well, apart from, you know, the weird glamour stuff.
0:46:32
But he’s making everybody happy by being their idea of feeling beautiful, not by fitting his party theme.
0:46:40
Yeah.
0:46:41
And I love that as a detail. Anyway, so Nina is unhappy. Also that sequined dress.
0:46:46
Oh, that’s…
0:46:47
Was it a dress or a jumpsuit? I think it was a jumpsuit. I don’t know. There were so many sequins. I’m in awe of whatever it is. This is my point about Donna Preston just being really fucking stunning. Anyway, so Nina is unhappy. She does not want to go to the meeting. I love Christmas lights as this recurring theme, by the way. I love that she’s got strong opinions about Christmas lights.
0:47:08
Everybody does.
0:47:10
That honestly made me like her character more.
0:47:13
Yeah.
0:47:14
I find something very charming. I’ve got thoughts on that, actually. I find something very charming about someone who’s got thoughts on the Christmas lights. She does seem to, and I know part of it’s just that this is a bit more interesting plot for her, but she does seem to, as soon as Lindsay’s kind of disappeared,
0:47:29
she becomes a little more interesting,
0:47:32
because that’s not all she’s thinking about, maybe, or I don’t know. Yeah, I think taking that off and it’s done gives her more to do. But yes, there’s something weird coming and it’s coming in waves, and so Crowley convinces her to go to the shop.
0:47:46
Yes.
0:47:47
And the fog starts rolling in. I liked Crowley’s very subtle method of persuasion there,
0:47:55
which was something nice, like,
0:47:57
ha ha, come on, you’ve got to go to the shop now. Then, you know, you can trust me. And Nina’s like, you’re weird.
0:48:04
And Crowley goes, ah, do it!
0:48:07
He didn’t stay as a zero-file tactics for long, but it worked. Bless him.
0:48:12
He knows what works for him. Neck tendon standing out very well. Yeah. Ah, do it!
0:48:20
So yes, in the shop, everything has gone a little bit Austin, which is great. Jim is… Brandy snuggling and all. Brandy smuggling and all. Jim’s serving canapés. Jim’s suit. And going with this theory of a zero-file has got everyone in whatever they feel like prettiest and most comfortable in, I really, really enjoy that that’s that for Jim.
0:48:41
Absolutely.
0:48:42
I trust you in these tiny little dinners.
0:48:45
They’re free.
0:48:46
It’s a defamiliarization.
0:48:48
Yeah, yeah.
0:48:49
But delivered charmingly by Jon Hamm in a ridiculous suit.
0:48:52
With a vol au vent. With a vol au vent. Jon Hamm in a ridiculous suit with a vol au vent.
0:48:58
The most unusual combination in Cluedo. But if you do get it, you win all of Cluedo forever. So yeah, so Nina has this thing about she’s upset, but she doesn’t feel upset. Mr. Brown says that he’s looking forward to treading a measure later. He just would be that guy though in a Jane Austen book. That one that like everyone cringes around but politely has to dance with at some point. And he has no idea how cringy he is.
0:49:25
Yeah, absolutely. Yeah.
0:49:27
Maybe at some point the protagonist is threatened with an engagement to him.
0:49:32
Yes.
0:49:34
I feel bad for Tim Downey, but he’s very good at playing awful.
0:49:38
Yeah, absolutely.
0:49:39
In a way that I greatly enjoy. Yeah, it is a compliment how cringy we find this character. That’s clearly what he’s going for. We see some of the dancing in this scene and specifically we see Mutt Spouse played by friend of the pod, Andrew O’Neill.
0:49:53
Friend of a friend of a pod.
0:49:55
Friend of a friend of the pod, the only podcast. Friend of the pod once removed, Andrew O’Neill.
0:50:00
Second cousin.
0:50:00
Who is beautifully bedecked.
0:50:02
Beautifully bedecked.
0:50:03
So Andrew actually tweeted at some point that that dress actually does show quite a lot of leg and they actually filmed a lot more dancing scenes that end up getting cut. So if listeners could all get in on us with a petition.
0:50:16
That’s on a postcard.
0:50:18
Petition to Amazon Prime to release the extended cotillion cut.
0:50:21
We would all be very grateful. And there’s the episode title. Thank you.
0:50:29
But yeah, delighted to see Andrew there. Anyway, so in the back in the street, Crowley sends Maggie. Back on the streets. Back on the mean streets of Soho, just outside the bookshop. In the street, Crowley sends Maggie across to the shop and intercepts the demon hordes who shouldn’t be up here demoning about. They tell him they’ve come for Gabriel. Yeah, it’s just this weird mix of like low and high stakes here. So Crowley’s on this fucking errand for Aziraphale and then this fucking demonic hordes coming in and he’s dealing with it in the same tone of voice he was dealing with the rest. And it seems like because of like the fuzz we’re in about it as well, it kind of seems like he’s dealing with an admin problem for the party at the same time as this existential threat, you know? Yeah, this is what I mean about all the priorities have kind of felt weird across this season. The only time Aziraphale’s really prioritised the amnesiac archangel and there’s something terrible is when he went off to Edinburgh and that was a jaunt. That was so he could go and do something. I’m kind of starting to appreciate it now because I’m starting to feel like it’s very much on purpose.
0:51:39
Yeah.
0:51:41
But yeah, also I like, I’m not sure if it was this scene or the next time we see the demons, but I liked face melty demon. I thought that was a very nice bit of SFX. That was. Good effort face melty demon.
0:51:50
Yeah, good stuff.
0:51:51
Didn’t get your name, but well done.
0:51:53
Globular. Nice.
0:51:56
That’s not globular. Globular means like a globe. Globby is much worse though. You know what I mean, guys.
0:52:01
Yeah. Thanks. We all know. Anyway, meanwhile, back at the ball.
0:52:05
That’s globular.
0:52:06
Sorry. You’re globular. Wow.
0:52:14
All right, we are very professional podcasters. At the ball, Mrs Sandwich and Mrs Cheng discuss their professions. I’m not saving this for Easter eggs. This conversation made me so happy. The seamstress.
0:52:24
Yeah.
0:52:26
Not even a Discworld spoiler, but in Discworld, sex workers are called seamstresses. So it’s very funny.
0:52:32
Yes.
0:52:33
We’re taking quite a lot of time to explain this to, I imagine, our completely imaginary audience of people who’ve never read Discworld,
0:52:39
but are listening to this. But just in case. You never know. You never know.
0:52:44
And yeah, that moment brought me a lot of joy.
0:52:47
Yeah.
0:52:47
I did see on either Twitter or Blue Sky, someone kind of criticizing it and feeling like they shoehorned it in to get a Terry Pratchett reference, but it was so out of context.
0:52:55
And I was like, no, it’s fun.
0:52:57
Like, even if you haven’t read Discworld, like, that is an amusing conversation, especially the way they’re doing like full regency. And we’ve had them talk not like that. It’s amusing in the Discworld, even though it’s never explicitly explained why seamstress exactly, or maybe it is, but I can’t remember.
0:53:12
Yeah.
0:53:14
Donna Preston’s delivery of darning is excellent. I keep saying regency, by the way, and I’m not sure that’s quite technically the right time period.
0:53:24
Oh, I don’t care. It’s fine. It’s fine. It’s close enough. Let’s go for the thing of Bridgerton. Yeah.
0:53:28
There’s a hint of Bridgerton to this. Aziraphale loves Bridgerton, doesn’t he?
0:53:31
Oh, absolutely.
0:53:33
He loves it. Crowley pretends to hate it, but also gets annoyed with Aziraphale, which is awesome. It’s a surprisingly specific fact to refute Aziraphale’s fanboying. And points out all of the anachronisms.
0:53:48
Look at us fanficcing on the go. Anyway, Maggie invites Nina…
0:53:53
I’ve got a treble halter chord, sorry, Karen. Maggie invites Nina to dance. Crowley wants to talk, but Aziraphale fobs him off. So we get the lovely Nina and Maggie dancing scene. But Nina is the slightly more self-aware one who is confused and aware that what’s happening isn’t normal. Both of them are more immune to it than everyone else.
0:54:18
Yeah. Nina will say.
0:54:20
Probably because Nina isn’t wanting just to lean into it like Maggie is. Yeah, Maggie is willing to be swept up in it. I think actually Nina is somewhat the one anchoring her.
0:54:29
Mm-hmm.
0:54:31
Um, so yeah, Crowley looks out over the fog and the demons and Jim and his canapes experience some regency flirting. Again, A-plus performance specifically from Andrew O’Neill.
0:54:42
Yes.
0:54:43
Donna Preston was great in it as well. It was just very well done. I would be a hell of a group to stand in at a party.
0:54:51
Yeah, I would not leave.
0:54:55
Crowley tries to talk to Aziraphale again, but Aziraphale invites him to dance. And even with all my I’m not as invested and what I loved in Aziraphale inviting him to dance. And they have a little dance. And obviously Crowley’s not going to say no.
0:55:10
No.
0:55:10
And obviously he’s doing all the steps perfectly and he’s very good at it even as he’s getting very stressed out. Obviously. The only thing I had time to go back and re-watch from season one was that Aziraphale stepping into the hellfire scene. But I would like us all to take a minute to remember the demons dancing with pins scene from season one. And to your homework listeners is to go back and re-watch afterwards because I don’t think anything quite tops David Tennant 70s dancing with a pin.
0:55:38
I don’t know.
0:55:38
The very close proximity Aziraphale doing that weird dance. The one dance he could do.
0:55:46
Oh, the gavotte. Yeah.
0:55:48
Now that’s a happy, happy man.
0:55:50
Go and watch both, dear listeners. Okay. You won’t regret it.
0:55:53
And then tell us which one you think is more pleasing.
0:55:57
It’s the new way of deciding your horoscope. Yep.
0:56:00
Are you demons dancing with a pin guy or an angel doing a gavotte guy?
0:56:08
The two genders.
0:56:09
I’ve got to stop making that joke.
0:56:10
Anyway. I like that joke. Let’s make it always.
0:56:15
Shax arrives via the dirty donkey, which is doubling as a daughter.
0:56:18
Via the dirty donkey darling. The demonic dimensions.
0:56:22
Sorry, say that again. I ruined your alliteration. Shax arrives via the dirty donkey, which is doubling as a daughter demonic dimensions.
0:56:28
That was off the cuff.
0:56:29
I didn’t even write that down.
0:56:30
Delightful.
0:56:31
Nina and Maggie are having a little dance and Maggie learns about the breakup.
0:56:36
I have Nina and Maggie thoughts.
0:56:38
And I’ve been saying like I’m struggling to care about them getting together in the show. Part of it because like I feel like it’s the wrong thing for Aziraphale and Crowley to be focusing on.
0:56:51
Yes.
0:56:51
Like it’s very like they can’t see the forest for the trees. They’re focused on this one detail of getting away with the miracle when the problem is so much bigger and there’s a demon horde outside.
0:57:00
Yeah.
0:57:00
I did like it also like the fact that it felt very one-sided that Nina was so standoffish about it. I did love Nina say something about being hard work and Maggie’s little face when she says I don’t mind hard work.
0:57:13
I don’t mind hard work.
0:57:14
I don’t care about the two of them getting together but I care deeply about Maggie. But I am now of the firm belief that they should not get together.
0:57:24
Okay.
0:57:25
Because Maggie doesn’t really know Nina that well. She’s created like an idealized version of her in her head. It’s what we were saying last week.
0:57:32
Yeah. Yeah.
0:57:32
Which is you know which is what you do when you get a crush on someone.
0:57:35
Yeah.
0:57:36
But also Nina needs to like have that whole thing you know I don’t think Lindsay actually liked me. Nina needs to be single for a bit.
0:57:42
Yeah absolutely.
0:57:43
Yeah even if it ends with like the romance isn’t off the table but like should we just be friends for a bit.
0:57:50
Yeah I’m like shipping them but I’m not shipping them.
0:57:53
Yeah not immediate ship. You can dock on the pier for a bit you know.
0:57:58
Yeah yeah.
0:58:00
Maybe maybe just a punt.
0:58:02
Nice.
0:58:02
Anyway so Crowley tells the Aziraphale about the demons while they’re dancing. But Aziraphale is still not taking it seriously. I know again again it’s like Aziraphale’s quite a worrier generally. This is why I feel like his glamour is working on himself. My other theory is that when Jim first arrived at the bookshop he said you know something terrible wouldn’t happen if I came here and I knew that and I came here and I knew everything would be all right. And I think because Aziraphale whether consciously or not still has this sort of automatic I do what Gabriel says built into him somewhere. He’s just taken right that’s true if Jim’s here he’s okay. Everything’s okay. My only other theory is that a little later in the episode someone says to him something about plans making plans Crowley and that he says I am making my own plans. Yeah yeah. Maybe he’s being a bit duplicitous and we don’t know yet.
0:59:01
We’ll get there.
0:59:03
A rock flies through the window demanding that they surrender the angle. Now if people could do that without maybe breaking the window that’s exactly what I need to practice the lettering. Just leave them politely on the doorstep.
0:59:16
Yes. Excellent.
0:59:18
Okay do I have to so I don’t have to put surrender the angle on it before I bring it to you. It would be better if you didn’t in fact because I need the space on there. Okay but at some point if you get some spare rock can you do a surrender the angle rock?
0:59:29
Absolutely I can.
0:59:30
Yes that’s a great idea.
0:59:32
Excellent perfect.
0:59:34
So Shaz starts making threats to the humans at which point Jim gives himself up and puts on a fantastic coat while doing so. Which the contrast between that coat and like the three-day stubble.
0:59:47
Yes. I thought was beautiful.
0:59:50
Also like just the contrast between like again if we’re going with the costume theory that this is what Jim feels prettiest in compared to what Gabriel was wearing which were very very plain suits. Yeah but but this may use because Jim’s missing his wings subconsciously you know. It was incredibly angelic. Yeah it was a very big feather. Yeah but yeah like how we talk about Jim as if he’s a puppy or a small child. Oh a very big feather.
1:00:18
No look at your big coat.
1:00:20
Or your tiny little dick. Anyway the demons don’t recognize him. Their minds also slide completely off. The miracle was too good. It was too good a miracle. It’s like in that the job interview trope. I was like I’m just too hard working. Yeah oh that’s my biggest flaw. It’s this scene isn’t it that Aziraphale does the vague hypnotism bit right? Yeah there’s a couple of moments if you notice like from when Nina first comes in you actually hear the little hypnotized noisy makes when he’s trying to get Nina to relax and enjoy the party. And it doesn’t work on them. Not thoroughly no. Well at this point definitely not at all because Maggie goes are you trying to hypnotize us?
1:01:03
Yeah.
1:01:05
I wonder just how much is just they’re not susceptible. And how much is there maybe something else we’re going on I don’t know.
1:01:12
Yeah that’s it.
1:01:14
All right all right here’s a cork board. Here’s a string let’s go. They’re so f**king focused on these two people who don’t seem to matter at all.
1:01:23
Yeah.
1:01:24
These two people seem to be immune to the powers. One of these two people are very important supernatural beings or harboring supernatural beings and they didn’t realize it. Oh yeah I can definitely see that being the thing. Secret angels. Maybe it’s not even a recasting at all and they’ve still got some connection to the Chattering Order of St. Beryl.
1:01:43
Yeah yeah. F**k.
1:01:45
All right that’s a bit too cork. I feel like that might be too cork board and string. No no it’s fine we’ll just buy a bigger cork board.
1:01:51
Excellent.
1:01:51
We will find room for these theories. We’ll never run out of twine at the Drew Starmie key thread that’s our one guarantee. Endless twine. This is going to be so fun for the people listening who have seen all of it.
1:02:03
We’ll never know.
1:02:07
But have you seen the family tree I made up for Maggie and Nina?
1:02:12
The eagle. The eagle? Wake up people. Oh f**k.
1:02:21
Where am I?
1:02:22
I’m very sorry.
1:02:23
We’re at the threshold of the bookshop.
1:02:26
Oh yeah so we found out why this is.
1:02:28
It’s an independent embassy because it was connected to heaven and I went back and checked and the angels had to be invited in in episode two as well.
1:02:38
Oh well done. Oh and Muriel too right?
1:02:41
Yeah I don’t think we’ve seen anyone enter that hasn’t been invited in of the heaven slash hellish variety
1:02:49
Mm-hmm.
1:02:50
Because we don’t see him saying come in to everyone who comes into the the party which does mean maybe Nina and Maggie not so heavenly.
1:02:59
Oh yeah good point.
1:03:00
Because they can just walk in.
1:03:01
Yeah.
1:03:02
But yeah so this independent embassy threshold trash thing seems to work for angels as well as demons. Is ordering somebody to go inside the same as an invitation though?
1:03:14
Ah do it! Well no because I don’t know if Crowley can invite.
1:03:19
Oh that’s a good point yeah it’s not his house.
1:03:21
Yep.
1:03:21
Yeah again I’m not sure how closely this adheres to vampire rules and if it is vampire rules. Vampire rules from which thing? Oh yeah too many things for the rules. Anyway we got some remarkable spelling from Shax. Shax in this bit I just became very aware of the f**king beautiful accent that Miranda Richardson is indulging in I think would be the correct thing.
1:03:46
Everyone in the bookshop gets it!
1:03:49
It’s like almost proper BBC English. Yeah but just just really exaggerated and in slightly the wrong places in time. She’s she’s gone Moira Rose accent but the English version of it maybe. Yeah like it’s not transatlantic but it I could see her saying bebe.
1:04:06
Yeah. Everyone gets it bebe!
1:04:09
It’s like BBC English but kind of ragged around the edges. It’s like BBC English that’s been left in a puddle.
1:04:15
Yeah.
1:04:16
I have no idea if what I’m saying is making sense at this point. The unrecognizable Gabriel returns to the bookshop because the miracle was just too good. So Crowley intercedes with the demons and brings up the rules of engagement which leads to again one of my favourite little quote tropes which is using a clause in a subsection to someone you’re pretty sure isn’t going to check the clauses and subsections.
1:04:38
Yeah.
1:04:39
Yes and that he then quite slightly admits to it.
1:04:41
It’s like they’re all going to check it. It’s fine don’t worry about it. Yeah.
1:04:46
It’s a favourite thing and it should be in more things. It delights me.
1:04:50
Agreed. Agreed.
1:04:51
So Crowley is now in charge of getting all the humans out but Mr Brown thinks he can deal with things and he can’t. So f5 in the chat for Mr Brown.
1:05:01
Yeah.
1:05:02
As he’s going out or as they’re talking to Shax um there’s a one another one of those beautiful framed moments of Aziraphale and Crowley next to each other and David Tennant’s got his head tilted down and his eyebrow right up and uh that Michael Sheen’s next to him with his sweet little surprised face. That was just another beautiful frame I had to pause on for a second.
1:05:27
Amazing.
1:05:28
I don’t think I clocked that one I should go back and have a look. Yeah I’ll uh well you’ll find it you’ll know when you see it. Also this scene is the scene where we get um
1:05:36
I won’t leave you on your own I know
1:05:39
which I thought was particularly affecting because of the lack of drama behind it.
1:05:44
Yeah.
1:05:44
It’s just very casual.
1:05:45
I won’t leave you on your own. I know. Off you go.
1:05:48
It’s it’s such a given now and we’ve been talking about that a little bit over the last few episodes.
1:05:52
Yeah.
1:05:53
Well you have especially about how Aziraphale’s just like secure in this relationship now. Yeah the security and confidence especially because we had his slightly more fluttering needing to establish things especially in some of the flashbacks.
1:06:07
Yeah yeah definitely yeah.
1:06:08
And Crowley’s not doing a good job at pushing back. At this point he’s given up. Um well yeah I mean it’s starting to feel like this is really more Crowley’s story.
1:06:20
Actually you know what I’ll get there.
1:06:23
So Aziraphale is trying to keep things calm Nina and Maggie want to stay behind to help.
1:06:28
Which I’m looking forward to whatever they do. I hope they get swords.
1:06:32
Staying behind to help after a party I feel is the mark of a very good person. So now I like them especially. Yeah no I do support those choices. I’m not sure they’re offering to do the washing up but. No but it’s like the celestial equivalent.
1:06:44
Yeah.
1:06:46
We’re washing up those demons. Yeah putting them on the sink rack of eternal damnation.
1:06:53
Christ.
1:06:54
Sorry sorry carry on. Don’t mind me just going off on a simile spiral. Ah yes the draining board of dread.
1:07:00
This is how I have a breakdown.
1:07:02
I just keep doing similes until I’m curled up in the fetal position. Francie we can do this we can get to the end of the episode.
1:07:08
I’ve got faith in you. Okay.
1:07:11
Shax delivers Crowley’s mail and Crowley sends the humans home. And there’s a very nice little exchange between him and Mrs Sandwich. Who he’s got to head up this two by two procession with him.
1:07:21
Hmm.
1:07:22
I’m assuming you also were singing to yourself the animals went in two by two.
1:07:25
Hurrah.
1:07:26
I wasn’t but I will be now. And Mrs Sandwich says you’re a good lad and he says technically not either.
1:07:31
And uh yay relatable gender moment. Yep not quite.
1:07:36
But you tried. Yeah so then Aziraphale gets a familiar looking circle out in the bookshop. And um he says don’t worry Crowley will have a have a plan. Nina and Maggie say well why have you got to wait for him? He says no I’ve got a plan but but you know Crowley will come up with something. Uh what’s he say? Rescuing me makes him so happy. And he looks back like I really disliked Aziraphale in this moment.
1:08:01
Oh yeah.
1:08:02
This is what I mean about this idea of it being kind of more Crowley story. Is that I care more about how Crowley cares about Aziraphale than how Aziraphale cares about Crowley.
1:08:11
Yeah. And this this distance and this push back and independence.
1:08:17
I’m not saying that that you know if you’re talking about it just as a relationship that there shouldn’t be pushback and there shouldn’t be independence from each other. But Aziraphale has had this sort of smugness alongside it the whole season and that felt so like cringey and patronizing. Do you think it was do you think that’s its own thing or do you think it’s just taking what we were talking about a second ago a step too far? I think it’s a bit of both.
1:08:42
Okay.
1:08:43
I definitely think it’s been building this whole season but that’s why I feel like I’m more invested in Crowley’s story versus Crowley’s and Aziraphale’s story.
1:08:50
Yeah.
1:08:51
I’m invested in the emotional outcome for Crowley and I think Aziraphale has… He’s definitely having more of a crisis.
1:08:56
Yeah.
1:08:57
And Aziraphale has been kind of a dick.
1:09:01
Yeah.
1:09:02
Yeah absolutely. He’s not listening to really quite important information. Exactly. And I was thinking about the Nina and Lindsay relationship and how it felt like overly blatantly abusive relationship and I wondered if there was meant to be… Not that I think Aziraphale is abusing Crowley but that if there’s meant to be a kind of, hey look at what bad relationships look like and maybe it could look like this. If there’s meant to be some parallels drawn there of not listening or…
1:09:26
I don’t know.
1:09:27
I might be taking it. Yeah, it might be a bit of a reach. I like how that’s too much for my twine.
1:09:31
But the other shit.
1:09:34
I think I’m just looking for something to make the blatancy of Lindsay being a dickhead like work.
1:09:40
Yeah.
1:09:40
See to me that never really bothers me.
1:09:42
Yeah. Whereas for me it felt…
1:09:43
Some people just have shit relationships and it takes a while to get out of them.
1:09:47
Yeah, absolutely. I’ve been there.
1:09:49
But it felt overdone for TV. It felt like kind of mere writing.
1:09:53
Fair. We’ll find out whether it was on purpose soon. Yes.
1:09:57
But I have to finish some dress things before I can watch it.
1:10:00
Okay.
1:10:01
Anyway, so Crowley goes over to Inspector Constable, regular human police officer, to report a crime.
1:10:10
He wants to be arrested.
1:10:11
And at this point Muriel admits she’s actually an angel.
1:10:14
Oh, no.
1:10:15
Crowley insists on being arrested. He wants to be taken up to heaven.
1:10:20
And they take the lift in the dirty donkey up as Shax watches.
1:10:24
One thing I did notice is that… You know, I mentioned Crowley’s accent shifting throughout the episode. By here it’s like full on like the posh drool. Because he’s going back up to heaven, I guess.
1:10:36
Yeah.
1:10:36
I wonder if it’s like infectious. Even though it’s a completely different accent to Muriel’s accent, he’s somehow picking it up. Or it’s slipping into character.
1:10:44
Or yeah. Yeah.
1:10:45
I’m gonna have to go back and watch this accent thing. So I’m sure you’re right, but I didn’t pick up on it. Also, speaking of framing, the shot as Crowley and Muriel are in the lift, but there’s a bar in the door that comes down between them. So they’re in the same space, but there’s like a big black bar literally separating the screen in half. It’s a really beautifully framed, like,
1:11:05
Nice.
1:11:05
There is a clear divide here shot.
1:11:08
Yeah, nice.
1:11:08
And yeah, I don’t know what’s gonna happen. I’m very excited. And then the credits roll and we get a lovely harpsichord arrangement of Good Omen’s theme featuring every day. Oh, I’ve got an unhinged theory.
1:11:21
Oh, cool.
1:11:23
Someone, either Crowley gets splashed with holy water or Aziraphale gets hell fired. And it does nothing, even though they’re the right way around because they’re that far from their original selves.
1:11:32
Oh, I like that. Yeah. Oh, I like that.
1:11:35
If that doesn’t happen, it should.
1:11:36
I like that.
1:11:37
Oh, I said familiar looking circle, by the way, when Aziraphale’s in the bookshop. Did I point out why it’s familiar?
1:11:43
No.
1:11:44
Oh, it’s that circle that he uses to communicate with the Metatron in season one.
1:11:49
Yes.
1:11:49
So fingers crossed Derek Jaffa could be next week. Just an open phone line.
1:11:55
Yeah, a really big phone.
1:11:56
It’s like us digging the landline out when we need to call somebody overseas.
1:11:59
Yeah.
1:12:01
I don’t have a landline. I’ve got one on top of one of these bookcases that we plug in when we need it. I respect that.
1:12:09
Anyway, yeah.
1:12:09
So have you got any other unhinged theories or big thoughts before we go on to our bests?
1:12:14
Nope. You?
1:12:16
No, I think I’ve been unhinged enough for now. Yes, let’s start to try and re-hinge ourselves before carrying on with our evenings. Just wait till next week. The hinges have gone. It’s not unhinged anymore. It’s just a door falling out of a frame. That’s not even a door. It’s a frame. It’s just a void.
Easter eggs and favourite moments
1:12:34
Anyway, no, we like the void. Quotes, favourite quote.
1:12:38
Favourite quote slash line reading from you? He’s just an angel I know.
1:12:45
Oh, his little voice wobble.
1:12:47
Fucking Crowley’s voice cracking in that line. I don’t know if it was on purpose, but I bet he was very pleased it happened. Honestly, I was thinking about doing some season wide overall favourite superlatives, whatever, next week. But I just wanted to give a big honourable mention now to every time Crowley says the word angel in literally any capacity because…
1:13:08
Yeah, angel is… Especially is.
1:13:10
It’s a descriptive and it used to sound kind of dismissive and it sounds very much like a pet name.
1:13:15
Yeah, yeah. All right.
1:13:18
My favourite, I think, like line performance in the whole episode is Crowley to Jim. I remember the look on your face. Archangel Gabriel, when you told my only friend to shut up and die. The way he drags out the R in archangel. And again, we were talking about his elastic face, the way he proper screws up and spits that out at him.
1:13:41
He’s such a good actor.
1:13:43
By all accounts, a very nice fellow.
1:13:46
Apparently so. I’ve been watching things.
1:13:49
I was watching, and I know we’ve watched it before, but that, um, do you know the 2015 when he got that special recognition award?
1:13:56
Oh, yeah.
1:13:57
Yeah, and his face. His little face while he’s watching that.
1:13:59
His face. Easter eggs.
1:14:02
Have you got any favourite or any Easter eggs that you picked up?
1:14:06
Oh, yeah.
1:14:06
The Doctor Who thing is not really an Easter egg, but just the fact that there was a Doctor Who
1:14:13
annual. Yeah.
1:14:14
So David Tennant talked to comicbook.com about the potential implications of David Tennant playing Crowley in a world where Doctor Who exists. And just him having a little existential crisis is very good. And I’ll link the article in the show notes.
1:14:32
Oh, I love that.
1:14:33
A couple of other Doctor Who things, actually. One is if you listen closely while they’re talking about the Doctor Who annual in the music shop, you hear the TARDIS.
1:14:42
Oh, really? There’s a little TARDIS creak. Fucking hell.
1:14:45
What a good score. Yeah, it’s even credited as like TARDIS noise BBC in the x-ray thing. I thought that was a really nice detail. Also in that music shop scene, actually, when Mr. Arnold is explaining why he doesn’t like going to these meetings, he explains that last time they whitted on about Christmas lights and then had a debate about the improper use of apostrophes in shop signs. And that’s actually, I mean, it’s a very Pratchetty thing in general, but I know there’s a very specific joke about that in the next book we’re covering.
1:15:13
Oh, yeah?
1:15:13
Yeah, the bit about the apostrophes and shop signs in Going Postal.
1:15:17
Oh, cool. I really hope I’m not misremembering that.
1:15:18
It’s been fucking years since I read that book.
1:15:20
I’m really looking forward to that.
1:15:22
Not to get too ahead of ourselves. That’s not a major spoiler for the book, by the way.
1:15:27
No, no, no, no.
1:15:28
I just don’t want to get excited about Going Postal. I’m still unhinged about Good Omens. I can be unhinged about multiple things at once. It’s my specialty. And yes, speaking of Doctor Who references as well, in the magic shop, we do get David Tennant in a fez.
1:15:43
Oh, yeah.
1:15:44
Because fezzes are cool. Fezzes are cool. And Doctor Who-ish, although… The fez thing is the 11th Doctor as opposed to David Tennant. But there is a bit where he wears a fez as well in the 50th anniversary special. And it’s definitely an intentional reference.
1:15:58
Cool. Yeah, I mean, there was that shot of it, wasn’t there? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Okay.
1:16:03
And him fucking about with the crystal ball was just entertaining.
1:16:06
Yeah.
1:16:07
Character Does a Little Face Award? Yeah, mine was pretty early on. For once, I’ve not done Crowley or Aziraphale. I’ve got Mr. Arnold accepting the offer of a Doctor Who annual with the look of somebody who is as scared as he is pleased by this ridiculous windfall. And did you spot he’s got it on his music stand when he’s playing his harpsichord later?
1:16:30
I didn’t.
1:16:31
I did notice he was clutching it as they left.
1:16:34
But I didn’t see that.
1:16:34
That’s very nice. My Little Face Award goes to when Aziraphale and Crowley are at the cafe and Crowley is trying to work out what the past tense of smite is and Aziraphale says smitten.
1:16:46
Smitten.
1:16:47
With a little face and then says, oh, you’re being silly.
1:16:50
And just his face.
1:16:51
He’s doing a lovely little face.
1:16:53
Yes.
1:16:54
Honourable mention though to Aziraphale inviting Crowley to dance as well. See, you’re very into, you’re in two minds about Aziraphale’s smug little face today. His smug little face is annoying me, but also it’s completely adorable because Michael Sheen is doing it.
1:17:09
Yeah, yeah.
1:17:10
I forgive a lot of smug little faces if they belong to Michael Sheen. The man of a thousand smug little faces, Michael Sheen. And finally, Helicopter and Loincloth Watch for Helicopter. I’ve gone with, you know, I pointed out in the opening titles that seem like different bits like from different episodes. I know it’s going to be tenuous when you have to start with an explanation.
1:17:33
Yes.
1:17:35
And the bit in the titles for this episode is Aziraphale and Crowley on the rooftops with hearts falling. So I’ve given Helicopter to those little hearts falling down.
1:17:43
Okay, that’s fair. I like that.
1:17:45
It was just an easy to talk about that. And for loincloth, I am giving the honour to Jim’s massive feathered coat. Jim’s massive feathered coat. In the library. There are so many loincloths we could have picked, but I agree.
1:18:00
That’s a good one.
1:18:01
Even though it doesn’t cover the loins at all.
1:18:03
No, it does.
1:18:04
Technically the loins are the back.
1:18:06
Shut up, Francine. Do you want me to chime back in at any point? No, no, it’s fine.
1:18:12
I’ll just continue.
1:18:14
No, yeah, I want to go eat.
1:18:16
So let’s wrap this shit up. I think that’s probably everything we are going to say about episode five of Good Omens.
1:18:23
It is.
1:18:23
My blood sugar is getting low and it’s becoming very apparent. Thank you very much for listening to this episode of the True Show Make You Frat. We will be back this time next week to talk about season six, the finale.
1:18:38
Yeah. Fuck yeah. God.
1:18:43
Until next time, dear listener, you can follow us on Instagram at thetrueshowmakeyoufrat, on Twitter at makeyoufratpod, on Blue Sky at makeyoufratpod, on Facebook at thetrueshowmakeyoufrat. Join our subreddit community r slash TGSNYF. Join our Discord, just message us for an invite because if we post one in the show notes, it’ll have expired by the time you get this.
1:19:01
Um, email us.
1:19:02
It lasts for a week.
1:19:03
Oh, does it? Yeah. Okay.
1:19:05
That’s why I’m saying you need to replace every week.
1:19:06
Yeah. Link down below.
1:19:09
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1:19:47
Well, that was fun. That was fun. What nonsense, but what fun. Right. Go eat. Cool. I will. Bye.