One of the most interesting aspects of Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’s contemporary interpretation of Sherlock was how it made one thing clear: Even if your protagonist looks like Benedict Cumberbatch, the reality of a character like that is how he struggles to fit in with the rest of the world.
This came to mind halfway through the fourth episode of Dispatches From Elsewhere for the blunt reason that, like Sherlock, the hero of this week’s installment also delves into his “memory palace” in search of clues. But in general, “Fredwynn” puts in a lot of valuable work in drawing us further into arguably the show’s most complicated character, a man who proves difficult to understand. Unlike Sherlock Holmes, though, that fact bothers Fredwynn (André Benjamin)—at least enough to send up a prayer: “Help me to understand my teammates a little better. That would be helpful to me.”
The beginning of “Fredwynn” overlaps, time-wise, with much of what happened in last time’s episode, but from the titular character’s point-of-view as he sneaks into the trunk of a limo that transports him backstage at the Jejune Institute shareholders’ meeting. There, Octavio and his goons identify him as a “hardcore,” meaning that he’s “someone who takes the game of life a little too seriously”—and, thanks to his obsessive habits, has a habit of “spoil[ing] the game of life for everyone else.”
But Fredwynn’s intellect is as mighty as his obsession, thwarting their efforts to detain him in a “special” closet during the event with some very clever use of ropes and cords, and sneaking into the control booth to get his hands on the “prompt book.”
As he mentioned in the previous episode (and much credit due to the show, for making sure that the overlapping timelines are clear without relying on too much repetition), the prompt book essentially scripts out the entire experience, but also suggests that a much deeper game is in play here.
Fredwynn used to work in big data, which he explains to his team made him quite rich at a certain point (and even now he still seems pretty comfortable)—but got out of the game when he grew concerned that companies were not just using people’s data to accumulate money, but power. To him, the game is not just a game—it’s tied up in that conspiracy he sees underlying every aspect of modern life, and so getting inducted into the Jejune Institute experience isn’t just the chance to have a little fun, but an opportunity for him and his teammates to “stop being unwitting participants and become detectives.”
While his teammates are concerned about his intensity, they still go along with a new investigation, tracking down the address connected to the envelope that Janice swiped off Octavio at the shareholders’ meeting. However, Peter gets a bit too nervous, asking for them to take a pause before pushing much further — especially because there’s a question as to whether or not they’re even still really “playing the game.”
Fredwynn tries to dial down the intensity, even attempting to get some sleep (something he’s failed to do for a few days), but his obsession won’t let him go, and he jumps out of bed determined to figure out what he’s missing. Digging into his memories, though, just reveals that the answer may be hidden in Janice’s own recollections, specifically of her wedding day.
Thus, he rushes to see her at her house, only then learning about her husband’s condition (which Janice clarifies here is the result of a stroke). She takes some convincing before agreeing to delve into her own “palace,” but with Fredwynn guiding her meditation and a quick appearance from Young Janice, they’re able to recollect the gift tag on one of the presents from the recreation of Janice’s wedding, which Fredwynn quickly interprets as an address that will lead to the next step of the game.
From there, it’s a matter of convincing Simone and Peter to rejoin the team, because while they might disagree on whether or not they’re playing a game or uncovering something deeper, the fact is they’ve become a united front—and whatever this is, it’s become very important to them all. Arriving at 3125 Spring Street, they discover a hidden door to a subterranean portal… and maybe, just maybe, the location of the missing mysterious Clara.
In case you were wondering: As of right now, AMC has provided screeners for the first eight episodes of the season, which means that advanced recaps should be possible for at least the next four weeks. According to a network rep I asked, at this point there are no changes planned to the show’s release schedule; of course, these are chaotic times, and making any sort of prediction about anything feels foolish.
But right now, we can use all the distractions we can get as we bunker down, and so thank you Dispatches, for giving us something to look forward to. “Fredwynn” was an important episode in terms of answering a fair number of big questions, while also establishing key dynamics of this team, and really giving André Benjamin a chance to embody every quirk and nuance of his character. And whatever comes next, our core foursome is committed to the game, and it’s wonderful to be on the journey with them.
Stray Observations
- This is a small but important detail: When Richard E. Grant is narrating at the beginning of the episode, he very clearly refers to the limo into which Fredwynn climbs as “my car.” Thus, in these sequences where Grant is speaking directly to the audience, does that mean he is doing so as Octavio from the Jejune Institute? Or does Octavio even really exist? It’s a fun question to consider.
- There are so many great character details included here, with Fredwynn’s choice of beverage standing out as one big one. The exchange—“What flavor is that?” “Efficiency.”—says an awful lot with a very small number of words.
- Porcelain cars are not a figment of this show’s imagination, for the record, but based on some cursory research, while a 1936 Bugatti 57SC is a rare (and extremely expensive car), I couldn’t find any evidence of there being a porcelain version of that particular model. However, there are more modern Bugattis that are made out of porcelain, for a far more reasonable sticker price: $2.5 million versus $30+ million.
- Peter’s excitement about becoming a detective “like on Law & Order: SVU” is a nice payoff from the casual establishment of his typical viewing patterns in the season premiere. As far as characters go, I’m looking forward to getting some more information about Peter—at the very least, his preference for tall glasses of milk at mealtime.
- There are too many books on Fredwynn’s shelves to go about trying to identify them all, but on his nightstand is an unexpected copy of James Joyce’s Ulysses. Given everything we know about Fredwynn, Infinite Jest would seem a more likely pick. (Then again, unlike a significant majority of people, myself included, it’s probably that Fredwynn has actually finished Infinite Jest already.)
- “I’m protective and quick, like a female cheetah.” Kind of want that on a T-shirt.
- Also, I tried to read what was written on Janice’s t-shirt when Fredwynn first arrives at her house, but the cardigan blocked most of the lettering. If you can deduce what it is, please share in the comments!
18 Comments
My buddy’s aunt makes $64/hr on the computer. She has been unemployed for eight months but last month her pay check was $12716 just working on the computer for a few hours. read the article ———————Lifestylesreview.com
Yeah, I’m out on this show. They got 4 episodes out of me. This is just really bad TV. It’s the “look how weird it is – that makes it good!” line of thinking. The story is dumb on every level. The acting is really bad, and I feel for Sally Field that apparently one of the great actresses of our time has to rely on shit like this to even get work now.AV Club giving this trash heap rave grades is so Transparent…. there’s only one reason you’re doing it.
I don’t think the comparison to Sherlock Holmes fits, at least not from what we see in this episode. Sherlock’s a detective who solves crimes no one else can; on the other hand Fredwynn is solving puzzles seemingly meant to be easy, yet he takes the most circuitous routes possible (locking himself in the trunk of a car, etc.) to arrive at the solution.
Potential nod to the original game: the path to Elsewhere in San Francisco involved a “portal” painted on the sidewalk outside of a fenced-off empty lot next to a dilapidated building.
Yes, I agree; if not meant to be easy, at least definitely meant to be solved. But I think the game is tailored in certain parts to each player, which I like. Also, I enjoyed that Fredwynn’s memory palace trick was used here not to be smarter than everyone else, but to help Janice remember a clue left for her and to encourage her. I really adore the pairing of Janice and Fredwynn. I also enjoy the show’s handling of character. I’d love to learn what day Peter would have wanted to relive, for example, or the “honeytrap” that Fredwynn spoke of that caused him some sort of major setback (and does it have to do with his three-week long relationship?), but I love those little details about the characters that are just kind of put out there to fill them out as people. I probably relate the most to Peter, but the show has done a good job of making me feel like I relate to some aspect(s) of each of them.The “extradimensional hopscotch” is what you’re referring to? I think there’s also a nod in the last scene to the part of the original game that involved a “player” breaking into a home and ending up in a series of tunnels that other players had to go on a mission to break him out of. (The guy who got stuck in those tunnels was, I am 99% sure, not a player but an “actor” and part of the game.) What I also find interesting is that the show has already put forth the idea that Jejune and Elsewhere are one and the same, which was the endgame of the original game. I’m very interested to see where they take this from here; based on what it looks like from the preview and episode title, next week will reveal the fate of Clara, which was I believe the climax of the third “act” of the original game. I am really excited to see the new territory the show goes in from here – I was slightly worried that being familiar with the game/story this was based on would mean the plot points would be kind of spoiled for me, but it seems they have other things in mind. I have theories (I’m hesitant to share them just yet) but I’m super excited to see where this goes. Also beyond the plot I’m just in love with everyone involved in this and super psyched for next week.
It was “interdimensional hopscotch” but yeah.
I’d always assumed the part about the tunnels was made up for The Institute movie, or was some kind of crazy fan-made side quest at most. Any idea?
Oops – you’re right! I stand corrected.From what I understand from my interactions with people who were a part of the game, the guy who “found” Eva’s diary and then broke into someone’s house and ended up finding a tunnel that had the “crystal oscillator” and then getting stuck there was a player first who was recruited by the game. (IIRC, his name is not in the closing credits list of interviees – I could be wrong about this.) I think the quest to find him, though, was part of the game. I also think Fredwynn is slightly based on the guy (Organeil I think is what he was called) who apparently took the game way too far and went legit nuts.
I just love this show a lot, especially at a time in the world like this. It’s so… comfortable, but it never coddles the viewer. It could tip over into too-cutesy or too mystery-heavy so easily, but the character work (especially Simone and Janice) is so thorough and great that there’s always something real to fall back on, as a bedrock. And the production design is so great and so surprising every week.This was a great episode, although Fredwynn himself is still the character I connect with the least (and his introductory “imagine yourself as” prologue this week was very brief compared to the other three characters’, so I doubt I’m alone there). Andre is doing great work, but through no fault of his own he’s kind of outclassed by the other three leads – except this week did a great job of showing how the other characters matter even in an episode that’s not nominally about them. The entire sequence set in Janice’s house – that heartbreaking introduction to Lev, the really funny “I have no palace in my mind” bit, everything – was so brilliant and great and told us so much about both characters. I really can’t wait to see where this goes now all four characters are, more or less, on equal footing and we can cut between them equally.
If Pushing Daisies and Sense 8 had a love child, it would look a lot like this show.
I love every little bit of this show. It’s like a slightly more serious version of “Lodge 49.”
AMC is back!
Man, I miss Lodge 49. I wish that show was still on – it would pair up so nicely with this show.
I loved the assurance with which he escaped from that closet, like he’s been doing it for years and this was the third time today.
From the fact that we never saw him just try the handle, I assumed the door was unlocked. It would be a good metaphor for his character’s approach to problems, although perhaps too on the nose even for this show.
There was a magnesium Bugatti, the Aerolithe, that was based on the type 57 chassis. Production was limited due to the flammability and brittleness of magnesium, requiring hand forming of panels and riveting to assemble the body and mount it.
I’m so frustrated that I can’t watch this show anywhere. I have Hulu with Live TV and their AMC selections are pitiful. And then AMC’s streaming service only works if you already have cable, which seems ridiculous for the added expense, and I can’t even just…buy the season pass anywhere, either? Siiiiigh.
After watching episode one on the AMC site and feeling similarly frustrated, I was finally able to purchase the show through the App store on my phone. Try Google play or something similar.
I spent this entire episode just watching Field’s reactions even when she is in the background of the framing. She is just unbelievably talented and a treasure.
I love ALL the characters! The t-shirt I want is, “I am FULL Fredwynn right now.”