Gathering Storm – As the fifth episode of After The Flood begins, Joanna Marshall (Sophie Rundle) and Lee (Jonas Armstrong) argue about the shipping containers. Lee admits Jack is completely out of money so he won’t be able to keep going. Jo suggests Jack is working with William Caine to get away with murder, Lee’s money, and Lee’s land. Before Lee drops her off, he insists he has to ship the containers because that’s all he has left. Once Jo goes inside, Pat (Matt Stokoe) tells her he lost Tasha and it is supposedly still his fault. Jo lies about where she was. They have their home back now that Kelly and the others have moved out. Jo tells Pat she wants to be with him. When Pat leaves, Tasha (Anita Adam Gabay) calls Jo to say she found something in Daniel’s things.

She has William Caine’s address. Jo says they can’t go tonight so she asks Tasha to send her the address. She’ll run a check on it. Deepa calls Jo. Seconds later, Jo learns about Molly (Lorraine Ashbourne) being hit. Jo promises to get to the hospital right away. Pat complains about Keith (George Bukhari) texting him all the time. Keith explains he saw Jo with Lee Ellison. Lee made Keith give him three container export numbers. Pat leaves in a hurry after receiving a call. At the hospital, Jo finds her mom walking around and telling everyone about the risk of flooding. She tries to convince Molly to calm down. Pat arrives moments later. Jo tries to get answers from her mother who says she was at the Town Hall. The car was coming towards her.

She doesn’t remember much else. Molly wants to know why they’re letting Jack Radcliffe build a second Uplands when he gave them such a bad flood. She was cycling to Sarah’s place. Pat lets Jo wear his coat. She notices that he has a bunch of text messages. He claims it is Keith and Kelly asking about Molly. Jo wonders if Jack and Sarah were trying to shut down Molly. Pat says Jack has an alibi because he was with Sarah and they were having an affair. Jo says Roy doesn’t know that Chris wanted to show her that locked room because he had seen something. Pat argues she can’t tell him that. They keep arguing about it. Pat says they should work together instead of rushing ahead. Jo ends up keeping his coat. Pat seems concerned when he walks away.

Pat goes to the scene of the crash to check out Molly’s bike. Molly goes home with Jo. While Molly is alone, she checks out the bruises on her arm and elbow. Pat calls Jo to say traffic thinks it was joyriders. He tells her that he saw black plastic trim on the bike. Jo quickly ends the call when she sees Jack (Philip Glenister) going to her mom’s house. Molly calls him a rat. He says the Uplands is being nominated for a Green Eco Award. Molly claims she knows what he’s up to. Jack promises he is going to do it right as soon as he gets the money. Molly asks what is going on with Sarah Mackie. Jack explains that her ambition matches his. Jo returns while they’re still talking. Jo hears Jack talking about when they were together. When Sarah Mackie arrives, Jo decides to leave.

Jack follows her out and offers to give her a ride. After he is asked about his car, Jack says it is being serviced. In the car, they briefly talk about Jack and Molly being together. Jo gets out moments later. She tells Pat about Jack’s car so he decides to go check it out. Then, Deepa learns about the affair and Molly discharging herself. She asks about the pin from yesterday. Jo says they’re stepping back from it because it was out of order. Jo briefly speaks to DCI Roy (Daniel Betts) before getting a call from Tasha. Jo agrees to pick her up so they can visit William together. Jack learns that they’re not going to extend their credit. Lee texts him to say the shipment is going through. Sarah (Jacqueline Boatswain) tells Jack that she was selected to run in the by-election.

Jack says they should build a levee and he is going to need sand to do it. He told her to get onto it, but Sarah told him that wasn’t her department. Jack warns her not to start thinking she can just jump ship. When Kelly (Faye McKeever) calls Jack, he tells her to sell the car because he needs the money. Jo and Tasha go to Morton Lodge to see William. They encounter a blind woman who yells for Daniel. Emma knows about Tasha being Daniel’s sister. They go inside where they’re introduced to Daniel’s son Billy. Jo tells Emma about Daniel’s death. She asks if it was Lee who killed him. Lee is busy getting the shipping containers ready. He gets concerned that they won’t make it in time. Emma says Lee must’ve found out that Daniel emptied their bank account.

It was for them to leave. Emma says Dan was saying Tasha was talking about coming to live with him. She knows Tasha could be wild, but they were starting to go legit. Lee paid someone to tell Tasha’s dad that Daniel had died. Daniel was hopeless until he became a dad and a different person. Jo asks about William Caine. Emma says that is Billy. Deepa calls Jo to say she just came to check on Molly and found the back door wide open. Jo has to get back because Roy thinks she is with Molly. Pat tells Jo over the phone that Jack’s car was in for pre-booked regular service. It didn’t have any damage. Jo tells him that William Caine is a two-year-old boy. She also gives him Emma’s location. Phil Mackie (Nicholas Gleaves) tells everyone that they have another flood warning.

He checks on Pat who is worried about something. Jack learns they’re offering 58k for his car. He gives Kelly permission to sell it and tells her to make sure the money goes into his personal account. She sees two police cars pull up outside near Keith. Jo finds her mom preaching about the floods again. They end up arguing. Molly asks Jo if she wants to talk about her marriage. Kelly calls to tell Jo that the National Crime Agency is arresting Keith. Emma tells Tasha that Daniel came to France three weeks ago to see her because they had decided to leave. Although Daniel saw Tasha, he thought it was too much to come forward. They came home and talked. Daniel was going to write to Tasha as soon as they had moved away. They have a whole new life stored away in the lock-up by the docks.

The dog begins barking because police cars are pulling up outside. Jo and Pat check on Kelly who is frantic. Tasha hides the money before calling Jo to tell her about the police. She reminds Jo she was the only one who knew where they were. Jo finds a phone in Pat’s pocket and finds messages from Lee and Keith. In one, Lee tells him that the containers are moving within the hour. Pat catches her looking at it, but Jo claims it was looked and she didn’t see anything. Pat rushes out. Jo asks Kelly about Keith’s job. She says he logs shipping containers in and out. DCI Roy and DS Babak (Heider Ali) question Tasha at the police station. Roy says they believe she is intentionally withholding information about Daniel’s murder.

She tells them that she was with Lee Ellison at Nanta. Lee and her brother stole stuff and shipped it abroad. Tasha shows them where to find Lee. She thought Lee was her friend so she didn’t say anything previously. Jo begins looking for Pat. Phil gets upset with Sarah because she wants to take family press photos at Uplands. The police arrive to begin looking for Lee who is upset because the trucks haven’t arrived. Lee sees a police car coming toward him. He begins fleeing to retrieve a gun. He flees in a truck with Deepa behind him. She calls it in. She finds a red car nearby. Jo begins putting the pieces together while ignoring her mom’s call. Jo meets Pat where he proposed. She tells him about her suspicions. A flashback appears to show Pat with Daniel’s body.

 

After The Flood Review

The end of the fifth episode of After The Flood finally reached the big revelation that had been hinted at all along. There are highs and lows here, but After The Flood clearly isn’t as good as it could’ve been. There are some strong performances hidden among the mediocrity of the series.

One thing that makes the series difficult to enjoy is the horrendous camerawork that will make viewers feel like they have seasickness. A little shakiness is okay for intense scenes, but it has gone overboard here. It is particularly bad when the camera pans around because it combines the horizontal movement with the overwhelming shakiness.

The story obviously isn’t believable or original after the opening episode. Despite these issues, After The Flood is watchable with proper expectations. The series will likely be quickly forgotten once the final credits roll, but it will prove to be a decent way to kill six hours as long as it stays away from all the political and flood regulations stuff.

This episode scores a 5.5 out of 10. Recaps of After The Flood can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent work at this link. Learn more about advertising on Reel Mockery here. Discuss this series and more at the Reel Mockery Forum.