Humans: Review: Series 1 Episode 5

Some of the truths about Mia begin to emerge – and not necessarily the ones Joe wants!

The various plot strands are well and truly tying up now, with a heartrending scene between Colin Morgan and Gemma Chan that emphasizes how human Morgan’s Leo is (and the differences between him and the Synths around him…), as well as the purely human drama between Tom Goodman-Hill’s Joe and his son Toby (Theo Stephenson), as the latter takes the blame for activating Anita’s adult menu… and the former pays the price for his belated admission,

I’ve found it harder to engage with the plot thread involving Neil Maskell and Ruth Bradley’s coppers – partly because Maskell’s Drummond’s situation at home has felt rather clichéd – although last week’s revelation regarding Bradley’s character put a completely new light on the situation, and indeed on the whole evolution of the Synths. There’s a lot of backstory provided during this episode, both for some of the characters (notably William Hurt’s George), and the whole alternate world where Synths have become part of the background – something that the directors have continued to make work throughout the series (watch the reaction to Maskell’s DS Drummond being told of the discovery of Odi’s body).

Emily Berrington’s Niska continues to be the most human of all the Synths – or rather, the one that seems to have picked up the worst of human attributes. How her plotline plays out I suspect will be key to moral attitude that the series adopts overall.

Verdict: Humans continues to intrigue. 8/10

Paul Simpson