All Creatures Great and Small: "Andante"

After watching the first two episodes of the new Masterpiece series All Creatures Great and Small, you'd be forgiven for thinking that each episode will end happily for all the animals you encounter. The bucolic setting and guileless protagonist lend themselves to uplifting stories. But the life and work of a country veterinarian can be difficult and unpleasant, too. 

The series is based upon the book of the same name, a memoir by James Herriot, chronicles of his early years as a vet in Yorkshire in the mid 20th century. In the book's fifth chapter, Herriot must euthanize a horse who is suffering great pain and a slow death as a result of a torsion of the bowel. The young vet must then await confirmation of his diagnosis via a postmortem conducted by his boss, Siegfried Farnon. It is this chapter that is adapted into the third episode of the PBS series. 

James Herriot (Nicholas Ralph) examines a patient.
Source: pbs.com

The series's creators and writers deftly adapt the source material. The characters of Mrs. Hall (Anna Madeley) and Helen Alderson (Rachel Shenton) are bought forward to expand the main cast, and a romantic rivalry between James and Hugh Hulton (Matthew Lewis) for the affections of Helen is added. Herriot's accounts of his patients are lifelike on the page, and the series pulls a few of the vignettes from in the book into each episode, creating a vivid picture of his work.  In episode 3, writer Lisa Holdsworth builds the bulk of the story out of the seven short pages of Chapter 5, and only makes additions that either raise the stakes or enhance character development. 

While the horse in the book is both beloved and valuable, tension is added in the episode by also making the stallion a racehorse. Unnamed in the book, the horse is called Andante here, and is the also the favorite to win the upcoming Darrowby Classic. Every local at the pub has put their money on it. Everyone, that is, except Tristan Farnon (Callum Woodhouse). Seigfried's brother finds himself in a bit of a tight spot, having accidentally spent the payments he was supposed to have collected from the local farmers. Seizing rather questionably upon the not-yet-public news of Andante's death, Tristan puts what's left of his money on the second favorite, ultimately recouping his losses. By making Andante a racehorse, James and Tristan's storylines can be woven together. Plus, we get the chance to see another little scheme of Tristan's. While not drawn directly from the pages of the book, it's behavior consistent with the character the reader meets there. 

The postmortem examination looms over Herriot for the second half of the episode. Confident as he was in his diagnosis, television James second guesses himself in the face of angry and litigious stable owner Hugh Hulton. Book James has no such reconsiderations; the postmortem is standard, expected, and comes and goes within a few paragraphs. By letting the viewer live in Herriot's fears for the night, awaiting confirmation of his decision, the stakes are raised. Strangely, we viewers find ourselves relieved to ultimately find out that the horse was, in fact, dying at the start of the episode.

The farmer at James's next appointment rather distressingly refers to him as "horse killer." This and other contemptuous reactions from the Darrowby locals are not found in the book, but are believable. In both book and adaptation, the young vet faces an uphill battle toward acceptance in the community. In "Andante," Herriot's newfound reputation gives Siegfried (Samuel West) an opportunity to defend his assistant. Here, Siegfried is offered the position of veterinarian at the Darrowby racetrack, if he fires James. But Siegfried defends James. Perhaps more importantly, he defends James's veterinary philosophy. "Yesterday, you agreed the welfare of the animal came first. Today, it seems that's not the case," he tells the racetrack manager. The reader comes to know Siegfried as a soft-hearted, if a bit irascible, man. The episode allows the viewer to see that as well. 

Turning the short chapters of a long book into one-hour episodes of television cannot be an easy task. This is not the first adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small, but it is a successful one. This is because the writers understand the source material; while the stories are embellished, the setting and characters are true to their inspirations. Furthermore, those embellishments only serve to enhance the stories, adding the tension necessitated by the medium. 

Mercy Street: "The New Nurse"

Mercy Street, a new scripted drama on PBS, sets out to tell an untold story of the Civil War.  In a makeshift hospital in the Union occupied Southern city of Alexandria, Virginia, doctors and nurses tend to the wounded soldiers - from both sides - at a time when and in a place where efficiency was prized over quality of care. Around every corner we see an amputee, and morphine is still "experimental."

Here, doctors and nurses, rather than soldiers, are the war's voice. But the series uses cinematography, as much as its characters, to tell the story. This is especially evident in the deliberate use of color and light to enhance the mood. In one scene, young Southern belle Emma (Hannah James) glides through a filthy brown alley in a billowing white gown, matching parasol extended above her. Her clean dress symbolically shows us her innocence. As you might expect from a PBS drama, the costumes and sets are exquisite, and they serve to show the audience what the characters see.

Southern Belle Emma Green (Hannah James).
Source: pbs.org

Similarly, the script endeavors to tell the audience what the characters believe. We are offered pithy explanations of the social mores of the time: "Men fight and women pray." And arguments surrounding complex questions about what lies at the root of the war: "Pardon me, but aren't we fighting to free men of color? Isn't that what this war is about?" asks one character. "No, it's about preserving the Republic. Even Lincoln says so," responds another.

Of course, history is written by the victors, and no 21st century retelling of the War Between the States can escape the knowledge of a Northern victory, nor the moral rightness of the abolitionists. But from its first episode,  Mercy Street takes pains to present sympathetic characters from both the North and South. Likewise, there are villains on both sides. For example, smarmy Dr. Byron Hale (Norbert Leo Butz) may be a Union man, but he's not a man who's side you'd otherwise take. The series presents Nurse Mary Phinney (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), the titular "new nurse," as de-facto heroine, and our eyes through the episode. She fancies herself an enlightened abolitionist, but even she is hesitant to allow the free black man Samuel Diggs (McKinley Belcher III) to tend to a dying Union soldier, despite the fact that Diggs has the expertise to save the man's life.

Dr. Foster (Radnor) confronts Nurse Mary (Winstead).
Source: pbs.org

It is through Mary, then, that we as an audience are pre-emptively chastised for our preconceptions of right and wrong. Mary is loath to treat the Confederate soldiers, who she sees only as adversary. "Are there no sinning Yankees in these beds?" Emma asks her, "Atrocities are only ever committed by the enemy?" Mary tells Dr. Jedediah Foster that she finds his views on race "unenlightened." But this Union doctor, who grew up on a slave-holding plantation, finds her treatment of the Confederate soldiers equally offensive. "Blood is not gray or blue, madam. It is all one color." "The New Nurse" makes it clear that Mercy Street will not shy away from issues of race, but I expect it will address them within the complex socio-political context of the 1860s.

Speaking of Dr. Foster, I will admit that it was the screenshot of a bearded Josh Radnor that drew me to this show. How would this How I Met Your Mother alum fare in an historical drama, I wondered? Turns out, he fares quite well. Perhaps not at first, but with a second viewing of the episode, I realized with some amount of surprise that thoughts of HIMYM had left my head. Dr. Foster has all the sincerity but none of the naïveté of Ted Mosby. Moreover, if Mercy Street makes time for romance, Radnor is a ready made leading man.

The show's pace is steady and deliberate. It gives both the viewer and the characters a chance to reflect on what's happening inside the hospital walls. It is at once tender, as in the scene where Mary takes down a letter dictated by a 15-year-old soldier to his mother and sisters, and tragic, as in the scene where that same soldier dies, still clinging to the flag he promised his father he'd not let touch the ground. As if to emphasize the futility of war, a bugle plays the young boy a funeral dirge while soldiers outside the window celebrate a victory on the battlefield.

The six-part series Mercy Street airs Sunday nights at 10 PM on PBS.

Emmy Nominations: Rabbit Ear Reactions

Emmy nominees were annouced this week, and I can't let this momentous television occasion pass without sharing my two cents. I'll try to avoid reiterating what you've probably already heard. Here are some Rabbit Ear Reactions: First, two disappointments. Then, a program I was thrilled to see nominated - one you might have overlooked.

If you follow me on Twitter, you may have read my grief tweets about Survivor, which was not among the nominees for Reality Competition. Nor was Jeff Probst nominated as host. This was particularly sad because Survivor had one of its best seasons this year with Caramoan's Fans vs. Favorites. Not to mention the fact that episode 5 of that season was a landmark in the history of reality TV. That said, those who write that the show was "snubbed" aren't quite right. It did receive nominations in some of the less-hyped categories.

Another show that received little recognition in the major categories is The Office. I was surprised to see how differently 30 Rock and The Office - both departing NBC comedies - fared in the nominations. 30 Rock received 9 nominations in major categories: Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Jane Krakowski, 2 Guest stars, 2 for Writing, 1 for Directing, and Outstanding Comedy. The Office got only 1: Greg Daniels for Writing for the finale. Even though I'm sad The Office didn't receive more, I'm pleased that the finale was recognized. It was perfect. Daniels should win. But chances are, he'll be beat out by Tina Fey, nominated in the same category for the 30 Rock finale.

So far I've just been talking about the "major" categories. The ones listed here. But it's worth downloading the complete list of nominees. 

If you just glanced through those major categories on Emmys.com, you may not have noticed that Live from Lincoln Center received three nominations for "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel." I was thrilled to see that this New York Philharmonic stage production of the classic musical was nominated for Musical Direction, Choreography, and  in a category called Special Class Programs, where it's up against award show broadcasts and the London Olympics Opening Ceremony. You can (and should) watch highlights from this phenomenal musical production at PBS.org. Or right here!

Watch "Rodgers & Hammerstein's Carousel" Program Highlights on PBS. See more from Live From Lincoln Center.

I can't remember a televised stage production this well done. It was technically masterful and emotionally powerful. Carousel can be a frustrating play. Its storyline - with outdated gender roles and domestic violence - is troubling. But these actors brought the characters to life so authentically that I watched Carousel in a totally new way. I think I understand it better now than I ever have. (By the way, that's saying something, as I was once in a production of this musical!)

Reading through the list of nominations this year - and seeing Carousel recognized in particular - made me realize something about these awards: No matter how much the Emmy broadcast itself will focus on the big-budget, popular, and mostly cable television series, the awards are for gems like Live from Lincoln Center, too. There are wonderful things happening on TV that you just might be missing. So, tune to PBS every once in awhile.

Special shout out this post to my father and my grandparents. The day after Carousel aired, I got phone calls from all of them, telling me I had to check my local listings and catch it the next time it came on. Thanks, guys. 

Independent Lens: "Wonder Women!" Review

The truth is, I love PBS. When I was a kid, I was a PBS kid. And now that I'm grown, I suppose I'm a PBS grown up. Don't be deceived, your local public television station is not only the home of Antiques Roadshow, Lawrence Welk, and Sesame Street, it's also where you'll find fascinating documentary filmmaking on series like Independent Lens. That program's most recent episode was titled "Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines". Broadly, the documentary looked at strong female characters in popular culture, using the timeline and character of Wonder Woman as a guide. I say broadly because, while I found this program fascinating, it only scratched the surface of some of the issues it discussed; It asked far more questions than it answered.

Source: pbs.org 

The film's subject worked well because the history of the character of Wonder Woman mirrors the history of women in America over the past 60+ years. She emerged during WWII, when women were entering the workforce, but her magic powers (and defined muscles) disappeared when the men came home. With the death of her creator, William Moulton Marston in 1947, and the anti-comic crusade of Fredric Wertham, Wonder Woman was buried beneath the comic heroes. That is, until the women's lib movement of the 60's and Lynda Carter's television heroine. At this point in the timeline, Wonder Woman's story morphs into the story of many pop culture heroines. In the documentary, that's when the heroine study gets a little loose.

For example: The film discusses both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Terminator 2: Judgment Day's Sarah Connor. Yes, both are strong female symbols in American pop culture, but they approach that strength in completely different ways. I would have liked to see a more thoughtful comparison of those two approaches. (At this point, I'll try not to get up on my soapbox.) Maybe it's the age difference, or the difference in genre, but Buffy and Sarah are practically polar opposites. Buffy is a strong girl, but in her miniskirts, her strength is designed to be sexy. Sarah Connor's strength is designed to be powerful. She's a strong person. And equality won't come until we stop telling girls that they can be strong, too. As if strength is something men are born with but women have to find. But maybe that's a topic for another documentary. (I said I'd try; I didn't say I'd succeed.) However, I do think it's phenomenal that Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy, writes strong female characters, and ones who are respected by the men around them. You should watch his Equality Now speech. I think he's awesome. It's just that Sarah Connor's chin-ups in her jail cell made more of an impression on me when I was young.

Interspersed with the comic book history lesson were some fandom tidbits. Wonder Woman Day, a benefit  for victims of domestic violence sounds like a worthwhile event for a worthy cause, but violence against women is (and has been) a topic for another documentary. And because this one couldn't address the issue deeply, it left the viewer with significantly more questions than answers. The fact that women are more often the ones who need the hero(ine)s, on and off the comic book page, is a much bigger, more problematic issue and one that pop culture alone cannot solve.

All that said, this feature was engaging, important, and thought-provoking. And maybe it was supposed to make the viewer ask questions like the ones I have. You can (and should) watch "Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines" at PBS.org or through the PBS app through June 14.